Neural Tube Defect (NTD)

I know the title is not very cheerful nor pleasant but I really think this is a topic that every mother-to-be MUST know.

Today has been quite a gloomy day for me and it's not because of the usual Monday blues. I was informed this morning that one of my Product Advisor who's 8 months pregnant now will be losing her baby. She was expecting her due date next month and it would be her first baby. She was admitted into the hospital last Friday due to some difficulties and was informed that her baby has NTD (Neural Tube Defect). The baby could only live for a day maximum after birth.

I really do understand the pain she's going through because I've walked on the same path. The only difference is that my journey ended even before reaching halfway and her journey ended just when she's reaching the finish line. Only God could heal this pain.

I'm constantly exposed to the topic of NTD because of my line of work and the industry I'm working in. And now I would like to share with you a little about this topic.

NTD is a common birth defect, occurring in approximately 1 in 1000 births. An NTD is an open spinal cord or brain that occurs very early in human development. In the 2nd week of pregnancy, specialized cells on the dorsal side of the fetus begin to fuse and form the neural tube. When the neural tube does not close completely, an NTD develops.

Folic acid and vitamin B12 are very important in reducing the occurrences of NTDs. Deficiency in either folic acid and vitamin B12 contributes to risk of NTDs as well.

Women who are planning for pregnancy are advised to get 400 micrograms (mcg) of folic acid daily. Women who are pregnant should receive 1 mg daily, and women who have previously given birth to a child with a neural tube defect should get 4 mg daily.

Most women do not understand the importance of taking folic acid during preparation for pregnancy and will usually wait till it's prescribed by the doctor when the doctor confirms a pregnancy. Yes, normally a doctor will start prescribing folic acid when a pregnancy is confirmed but how soon will the know of their pregnancy. Should one have deficiency in folic acid and only discover about their pregnancy after the 4th week, it would be too late because the formation process of the neural tube has completed. Taking folic acid after that would not be of any help.

I decided not to include images in this post because the images I've seen in Google Images are very disturbing. I would like to urge all of you who are planning to become mothers to start taking folic acid supplements at least 3 months before conception to minimize risks of NTDs. It's never too early to start and please don't wait till it's too late. Taking the right dosage is also very important.

Don't ever think that "It will never happen to me". Never take things for granted. It is always better to be safe than sorry.

Related links:

Neural Tube Defect on Wikipedia

Appeton Essentials Folic Acid

Only From Afar (Just The Way You Are Parody)

Creative Signs... or NOT!

Few weeks back I was out for field work to a place I've never been before...Bandar Mahkota Cheras. With the help of my hubby's GPS, I was directed to a cross junction where the beginning of the road I was looking for was suppose to be. While keeping my hands on the steering wheel, I was looking for the road sign to tell me if I should go straight, turn left or turn right.

All 3 directions that I looked, this is what I saw...

Now, tell me. What's the name of the road???

I drove around this whole area and ALL the road signs are of the same design!! Just imagine if one was lost with no one in sight and this is all that was available.

After that day, every where I drove, I looked out for creative signs as such to be shared in this post.

My findings made me ask myself this...Who is suppose to be responsible in maintaining these signs? Is it suppose to be on 'PUT UP & GO' policy?

To me, these signs seems to be a free notice board for "Money Lenders" to express their creativeness. I keep wondering, the phone numbers are right there and why aren't the respective authorities doing anything about it??? Companies pays millions to advertise and these people advertise for FREE??? Try doing the same thing on these road signs with Milo or Colgate advertisements. The next thing you know, the company will be slapped with a HUGE fine for vandalism. So, why?

If they are kept free to express their creativeness, sooner or later, all the paint company is going to go out of business because exterior and interior paints will be replaced with these artwork.