Each day two babies are conceived in the UK with a neural tube defect. These can vary in terms of severity and how it affects the child’s life long term should they survive the condition. Shine supports children born with spina bifida due to a neural tube defect. The child might be severely disabled, incontinent and, in some cases, suffer serious brain injury.

Research has shown that should a prospective mother take a folic acid (vitamin B9) supplement correctly prior to falling pregnant, 70% of these disabilities could be avoided.

At Shine we aim to educate prospective mothers about the importance of ensuring that they take a folic acid supplement in the form of a small tablet, which can be purchased at their local pharmacy. 400 micrograms (5 mg should there be a history of spina bifida in the family) taken daily greatly reduces the risk of having a baby born with spina bifida.                                                       

As we all know not all pregnancies are planned and only a small percentage of prospective mothers are acting on our advice and taking the supplement ‘just in case’. We are working hard through various social media networks, our website and advice work to get this VERY important message across.

We can make a real difference to a family’s life by continuing to promote the importance of folic acid - it really is a matter of life and death in some cases and can be the difference between a baby being born with a severe disability or without the disability.