Folic acid benefits for men

Folic acid is an important synthetic form of folate – a naturally occurring form rich in Vitamin B9 found mostly in vegetables.  It is absolved in the jejunum. A couple of men wrote us that their wives were teasing them to take folic supplements alongside them. So I researched this article on folic acid benefits for men to share with you.

Where does “Folic” come from?

The word “Folic” comes from the word foliage. Most men may have heard of folic acids because pregnant women are advised to take them. 

It is a water-soluble B Vitamin. This means it is in and out of the body in less than 6 hours from ingestion.

Do you know why folic acid benefits for men are rich?

During conception, it has been discovered that folic acids can help babies develop their cells. It protects against birth defects by making sure healthy cells are made. A  male child therefore even begins benefiting from the folic acid intake of the mum from the get go. Females, too.

What is the primary source of Folic Acid?

According to scientists, the primary source of folic acid is mainly found in green vegetables. If you have ever eaten spinach, pumpkin leaves (ugu), broccoli and other green vegetables, you have eaten the naturally occurring form of folic acid.

What are the richest sources of Folic Acids?

Although greens and vegetables are quite rich in folic acids, the richest source are beans, nuts, seeds and lentils. Well, this was quite the news to me when I began deep research to understand folic acids for this article.

How much Folic Acid do men need daily?

Men need about 300 – 400 mcg of Folic acids daily to help the body perform the methylation function which appears to be doable for men. Most of our meals, especially in Africa are already laid with some form of green vegetables or beans.

There is also a love for nuts we find in this part of the world and lots of opportunities to purchase them while we carry on the day’s activities. For example, on a drive back from work, we find different types of nuts sold in traffic jams; they are strategically positioned at vantage sites in supermarkets (sometimes on the cashier’s desks), and for some of us our parents make them, especially for us and deliver them.

So no excuse not to get enough folic acid in your diet.

Where to get Folic Acid supplements?

You can easily find folic acid supplements in your local pharmaceutical. However, if you are like most busy professional and already shop online. You can get it here. 

The delivery is made to any location in Lagos for next to nothing. 

How many servings of greens can give us the required amount of folic acid daily?

You will need about 6 – 7 servings of green daily to get the required dose and folic acid benefits for men. 

This is where it gets quite tricky.

There may possibly be no way to achieve this amount of servings of greens daily. Therefore, one has to find other sources to get this rich nutrient into the system.

I advise you to supplement whatever you get from meals daily with about 25 – 50% (100 – 200 mcg) of Folic acids from a trusted pharmacy or clinic. 

The tablet is quite tiny, and you would not even notice it travelling down your throat. So you have nothing to worry about, if you, like me, do not like medicine touching any part of your tongue or mouth.

Folic acids, like most B vitamin supplements, should be taken once or twice daily to get the required dose. Folic acid helps the body perform one of the most important processes called methylation. FYI, the body performs about a billion methylation processes every second. 

The purpose of methylation is to copy cells. The human body is always replacing cells.

Functions of Folic Acid

Folic acid is beneficial in the following ways:

1. Genome Synthesis: This is simply to design and assembly DNA to long chromosome size fragment. This is one of the key functions of folic acid.
2. Improve Men’s fertility: men  with low sperm count have been reported by papers to have seen improvement in sperm count and general sexual health
3. Good for men’s hair: Folic acid contains nutrients that are needed for improving the hair of men. Naturally, men struggle more with their hair as they grow older. Using folic acids or folic acid supplements help achieve what they want for their hair.
4. Benefits to the heart: Folic acid contains essential vitamins that help with the heart. Particularly, Vitamin B9 helps with metabolism.

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Folic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors

Some medications called Folic Acid Synthesis inhibitors work against the the nutrient found in folic acids. The major inhibitors are the following:

1. Sulfonamides: Usually prescribed to treat different bacterial infections like ear infection, bronchitis, severe burns, eye infections, traveller’s diarrhea.
2. Trimethoprim: Like Sulfanomides, Trimethoprim is used to treat bacterial infection. Specifically, it is an antifoliate antibiotics. Yes, you read the name right. It is used to treat infections like urinary tract, gastrointestinal tract and respiratory tract infections.
3. Dapsone: A sulfone antibiotics, dapsones are used to treat illnesses ike Hansen’s disease (leprosy), as well as adult, teenager and children acne.

For full folic acid benefits for men, the above listed medicines should only be taken only when necessary and on prescription.

Causes of Folic Acid Deficiency for men

Men are generally susceptible to folic acid deficiency thus highly likely to suffer from folic acid deficiency due to their lifestyle.

Some of the causes of folic acid deficiency in men  include

1. Alcholism: well, I do not need to explain this much. Do I? In any case, folic acid benefits for men is diminished by alcholism.
2. Small Intestine Pathogens: which inhibits the intestine from fully absorbing nutrients like folic acid into the system.
3. Use of certain drugs: It is important to note that some medications can cause folate deficiency. An example is methotraxate.

Read also: Can I take folic acid when I am on my period

It is therefore advised that when you are on this medications, you need to be on the lookout to ensure you do not damage your body from the lack of supply of the necessary Vitamin B9 found in folic acids. We have mentioned these medicines which hinders folic acid benefits for men and women in the last header. 

There is also one more cause for which is unlikely to affect men but the women who love them – increased demand for folic acid by the body. This is caused by lactation and pregnancy.

Deficiencies caused by lack of folate in men and women

For already obvious reasons, folic acid (folate) deficiency will mean that one may suffer the following conditions:

Neural Tube Defects: If a pregnant mother has a vitamin B9 deficiency, her newborn will almost certainly have this defect. This is one of the reasons it is advised that pregnant mothers must take daiy supplement of folic acids to ensure the healthy development of the baby especially during the first trimester.

Megaloblastic anaemia: The megaloblastic anaemia suffered by a patient with a folate deficiency is followed with a normal methylmalonic acid. This is due to a reduced synthesis of purines and TMP which results in an inability of cells to produce DNA. The cells cannot divide.

Increased Homocysteine in the blood: High level of Homocysteine, without treatment, increases the risk for men having dementia, stroke or heart disease. Increased homocysteine in the blood also causes atherosclerosis which simply means the thickening or hardening of the arteries. As folic acid benefits +-men, the Vitamin component of folic acid help break down homocysteine in the blood along with Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12.

Conclusion

In this blog post, I tried to dispel the myth that folic acid is beneficial to women alone. A couple of readers of this blog in the past had requested for where to get folic acid online.