Vitamin B9 (Folic acid) Sources

Food sources

Green leafy vegetables (foliage) are rich sources of folate and provide the basis for its name. Citrus fruit juices, legumes, and fortified cereals are also excellent sources of folate. A number of folate-rich foods are listed in the table below along with their folate content in micrograms (mcg). For more information on the nutrient content of foods you eat frequently, search the USDA food composition database.

Food	Serving	Folate (mcg)
Fortified breakfast cereal	1 cup	200-400
Orange juice (from concentrate)	6 ounces	82
Spinach (cooked)	1/2 cup	131
Asparagus (cooked)	1/2 cup (~ 6 spears)	131
Lentils (cooked)	1/2 cup	179
Garbanzo beans (cooked)	1/2 cup	141
Lima beans (cooked)	1/2 cup	78
Bread	1 slice	20 (Folic acid)*
Pasta (cooked)	1 cup	60 (Folic acid)*
Rice (cooked)	1 cup	60 (Folic acid)*

*In order to help prevent neural tube defects the FDA required 1.4 milligrams (mg) of folic acid per kilogram (kg) of grain to be added to refined grain products, which are already enriched with niacin, thiamin, riboflavin, and iron, as of January 1, 1998. The addition of nutrients to foods in order to prevent a nutritional deficiency or restore nutrients lost in processing is known as fortification. It has been estimated that this level of fortification increases dietary intake by an average of 100 mcg folic acid/day.

Supplements

The principal form of supplementary folate is folic acid. It is available in single ingredient and combination products, such as B-complex vitamins and multivitamins. Doses greater than or equal to 1 mg require a prescription.