FRIDAY, Jan. 26 (HealthDay News) -- Taking a daily dose of 400 micrograms or more of folic acid supplements early in pregnancy reduces the risk that a woman will have a baby with cleft lip, a new study finds.

It was already known that taking folic acid prior to and early in pregnancy reduces the risk of neural tube defects, such as spina bifida, but it wasn't clear whether folic acid also lowered the chance of having a baby with cleft lip.

The study, published online in the Jan. 26 British Medical Journal, included the mothers of 377 children in Norway with cleft lip (with or without cleft palate) and 196 with cleft palate only who were born from 1996 to 2000. The study also included a group of mothers of 763 children without cleft lip or cleft palate.

The mothers were questioned about their diet and use of alcohol, cigarettes and drugs during early pregnancy. They were also asked whether they took multivitamins and folic acid supplements during pregnancy and, if so, when and how often.

Using this information, the researchers calculated that daily folic acid supplements of 400 micrograms or more reduced the risk of cleft lip with or without cleft palate by 40 percent. Independent of supplements, a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and other foods high in folic acid reduced the risk by 25 percent, the study concluded.

Overall, the risk was lowest among women who took folic acid supplements and multivitamins and ate a folic acid-rich diet.

Folic acid did not reduce the risk of cleft palate alone, the study found.

More information

The Nemours Foundation has more about folic acid and pregnancy.