Spina Bifida Association

The campaign was conducted by reaching out to thousands of friends, families, and co-workers through email appeals, in-person events, and messaging to more than 2,800 fans, friends and followers on SBA’s online social networking sites - Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter.

Recipients were asked to share the important messages with their own email and friend networks and to ask for donations for the work of the organization. To date, the campaign has touched thousands of lives and raised more than $28,000 for the Spina Bifida cause.

During the seven week campaign, SBA’s networking sites garnered a significant increase (144%) of fans, friends, and followers. This increased presence allowed SBA to message more individuals and organizations about Spina Bifida related issues, thus broadening its awareness efforts.

Thanks to all who participated in this groundbreaking campaign. For more information on SBA’s social networking sites, please visit www.spinabifidaassociation.org and select your social networking site’s icon.

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About folic acid

Many things can affect a baby, including family genes and things women may come in contact with during pregnancy. Taking folic acid cannot guarantee having a healthy baby, but it can help.

What is folic acid?

Folic acid helps the body make cells. When a woman is pregnant, she needs more folic acid than usual so her baby can develop normally. Spina Bifida often occurs in a fetus before a woman even knows she is pregnant. So women should take folic acid every day to have healthy babies. Research has shown that if all women who could possibly become pregnant were to take a multivitamin with folic acid, the risk of neural tube defects like Spina Bifida could be reduced by up to 70%.

Where can I get folic acid?

Folic acid is in multivitamins and foods like green vegetables, fruits and juices. Some foods like cereal and bread have folic acid added to them. A diet with a lot of folic acid is good for you, but most people do not get enough through food alone. The best way to get the right amount is to take a vitamin with folic acid every day.

How much folic acid do I need?

Women who could become pregnant should take 400 mcg (0.4 mg) of folic acid through a vitamin.

Women who have a child or had a pregnancy affected by Spina Bifida or have Spina Bifida themselves should take 4000 mcg (4.0 mg) of folic acid for one to three months before pregnancy. This amount of folic acid is higher than what you can get in the store, so you will need to see a doctor for a prescription. So, it's important for these women to plan any future pregnancy.

Questions? Call 800-621-3141

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First World Congress on Spina Bifida Research and Care

The First World Congress on Spina Bifida Research and Care convened in March 2009. Medical and other healthcare professionals took the next steps in developing and translating research to improve our system of healthcare for those living with Spina Bifida.

Among many other research findings released, one of the most potentially impactful findings presented during the three-day Congress was a revised figure on the number of Americans living with one of the various forms of Spina Bifida.

Preliminary findings from a study conducted at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicated that instead of the 70,000 figure which has been widely used, the actual number is closer to 185,000 living in this country with this challenging birth defect.

For more information on this and other research outcomes, please visit http://medicalconference.spinabifidaassociation.org.