Efficacy of Canadian folic acid food fortification.

Canada mandated that cereal grains, especially white flour, be fortified with folic acid by mid-1998. Between 0.1 and 0.2 mg of additional synthetic folic acid per day has been provided through this initiative. The current paper describes how this took place, and the epidemiological effects that occurred in the Canadian population, including higher blood folate levels and a decline in the prevalence of neural tube defects.