High dose folic acid 5mgs

[Rrrr123]

Hi
I'm so worried, please help. I am having the worst panic attacks and feel so worried I feel sick with worry. Please help me feel reassured.
I sadly had 2 miscarriages 2 years ago, I'm 38. My consultant advised having high dose 5mgs at least 1 month before and 3 months whilst pregnant. I haven't got pregnant so continued taking the high dose folic acid for when I am pregnant but now I worry I've taken for too long. The consultant said I didn't need to take for that long but I have incase I got pregnant. So worried plse help xx

I took it for 3.5 years before I fell pregnant and the midwife has advised I continue until birth so it will be over 4 years of taking it in the end. I also took it with Pregnacare so 5.4mg a day.

Your GP won’t have just continued prescribing just because the consultant said so because the GP is ultimately responsible for anything they have prescribed. They will have been told why the consultant wanted you on it so don’t worry about that. Usually the GP will get a letter form the consultant to say that they want the patient to be prescribed X medication for Y problem. GPs will also regularly review the benefits and the risks, if any, to you for any medication you’ve been taking long term.

@Rrrr123
What they mean by 3 months pre conception is 3 months before ttc u should take it not just for 3 months then stop, its to get it in to ur system before you fall pregnant has it has more effect that way.

OP, anxiety & miscarriage are symptoms of B12 deficiency. Folic Acid/Folate & B12 work together. I'm way more concerned about your B12 levels than I am a folate overdose. Actual medical information is that the extra folic acid is fine

Thanks. Through out the last year of taking high dose folic acid, I also took pregnacare conception with b12 in it every day. Will that have helped whilst taking the 5 mgs of folic acid plse? X

It's probably worth asking your GP for a blood test. Folate/Folic Acid uses B12 to work, so I'm not sure if high Folic Acid on its own can create an imbalance & cause your B12 to be low. It's certainly worth getting checked out.

It's unlikely a multi supplement would be high enough in B12 to match that amount of folate. I have a very high dose of B12 in an injection, so nothing wasted pm to go with my 5mg of folate, which is the same amount as your folic acid & is the same thing.

Sometimes taking a B12 supplement won't help as not everyone can digest it & change it to its useable form of Active B12. Some medications, stomach trouble, gut infections etc can mean you can't absorb it by eating it. There are sprays & pills that you dissolve under your tongue that might help, but if low, or even low normal, especially when pregnant, B12 injections are always best

I'll come back with some info links x

Pregnacare has 240% of the recommended amount of B12 so it’s almost certainly not hurting anything. I think you’d need to speak to your doctor for a blood test to see whether you actually are B12 deficient and if you are exactly what dosage you need to be on. No one can diagnose you over the internet as much as we’d like to

This one is B12 & Infertility...

www.b12deficiency.info/male-and-female-infertility/

I agree @thecapitalsunited, it definitely won't hurt, but might not be enough & definitely important to get checked by a doctor. We can only share our own experiences, no guarantees it fits for the OP

Pregnancy...

www.b12deficiency.info/b12-and-pregnancy/

General symptoms, just incase you recognise more symptoms than the 2 you mentioned in your OP. My experience is that they start slowly & insignificantly & you can collect the symptoms as minor ailments for years. Pregnancy & Labour escalated mine rapidly leading to my being diagnosed with M.E.🤦‍♀️ it wasn't M.E thankfully & is helped by B12 injections. Unfortunately it also affected DD too, so we went through years of scary health issues for her before we finally got her diagnosed with & treat for B12 deficiency.

It might not apply to you, but it's certainly worth your being aware of & getting tested for

Hope these help

www.b12deficiency.info/signs-and-symptoms/

Thanks all for your kind help. It is appreciated. I have booked for a folate test and b12 blood test for Tues. Just so scared as instructions on packet say don't take for 4 more than 4 months. I missed that and took for 1 year without a medical need like a deficiency but it was for miscarriage. But not proven consultant said. I feel like im the only one who has taken for miscarriage. Side effects say early onset dementia and cancer and heart problems for long term use

I was on 5mg folic acid right through pregnancy due to medication I was on causing 1 in 50 risk of neural tube defects. I've also been on very high dose B complex for several years due to having to stay on the same medication (it causes depletion/malabsorption of certain vitamins).

I was taking high dose folic acid for 3 years due to recurring miscarriages and previous pre eclampsia.
Folic acid is water soluble as pps have stated so your body will just flush out anything you don't need.
My body didn't actually hold onto and iron, foliate or b12 in my last pregnancy and I ended up with some pretty severe anaemia, so it's probably a good thing I had excellent reserves or the outcome could have been tragic

I was prescribed it when ttc because of a previous loss where baby had a neural tube defect. It never occurred to me that it might be too much. I'd have been taking it for months before conceiving Ds. I was under the impression your body just absorbed what it needed and got rid of the rest.

So sorry for your losses. How long did you take it when ttc whilst taking the folic high dose? Did you take a multi vitamin with extra folic in too. I took a pregncare as well so 5.4 mg of folic acid. My consultant just seems to have said only 1 month prr conception but a year later and no luck conceiving. He worried me and I feel like im the only one taken it for this long x

Sorry for your loss too. How long pre getting pregnant did you take for? X

Sorry for your loss as well. How long were you taking high dose folic acid prior to conceiving? Were you taking a pregncare multi vitamin too? Were you not able to absorb pre pregnancy? X

I was ttc for about 8 months. I wasn't on any other vitamins as far as I remember. I took it twice more but as far as I recall I got pregnant a bit sooner than 8 months with them. I really wouldn't worry about it but get your bloods done for peace of mind.

I never even had blood tests to check my levels after out first baby died so I may not even have been deficient. I was taking ordinary level of folic acid while ttc first baby. When baby was born with a neural tube defect it was just said that I should take the 5mg next time. Nobody mentioned a time limit at any stage when I was taking it.

Thanks so much.x

@Rrrr123, I took folic acid for a year before conceiving and for the following year as I kept losing the babies. Eventually baby number 5 stuck around and i took folic acid all throughout that pregnancy along with 150mg of aspirin, odansatron and huge amounts buscopan. All taken for recurrent losses, previous pre eclampsia, hg and a gallbladder/liver issue respectively.
I also took a pregnancy vitamin and my consultant told me that my body would flush out any excess folic acid.
I've always had issues with anaemia but never that badly. No one knows what happened or why but I'm back to normal now.

Sorry to hear of your losses. Did you have those conditions before you were prescribed high dose 5 mg of folic acid? How long was it you were on 5 mg of high dose for each time? I took every day for 1 year 5 mgs and 400 micrograms for 1 year ttc. With no luck. X

Thanks for the info. How long were you on the high dose for before conceiving? I've been on it a year now pre conceiving, 5 mgs and pregnacare multi vitamin. X

Congrats on your pregnancy. How long pre conceiving did you take high 5mgs folic acid for? Xx

Thanks. My concern was I've taken 5mgs of folic acid for a year now for recurrent and I was worried there would be a build up in my body x