Question

It’s January 1989 in Beijing, China, and Huang and Jiao have just married. They want to conceive a child as soon as possible, as most newly married Chinese couples do. Considering it is the middle of winter, and fruits and vegetables are not readily available, what important nutrient in Huang’s prenatal diet is likely to be missing, potentially causing her child to be born with spina bifida?

a) potassium
b) calcium
c) vitamin D
d) folic acid

Answer 1

folic acid

Step-by-step explanation:

Spina bifida is a type of neural tube defect that occurs as a result of the inability of the spine and spinal cord to form properly in children. The major nutritional deficiency that results in it is an insufficiency of folic acids in the diet of the pregnant mother and fruits and vegetables are natural rich sources of folic acid. Hence, since it is winter and there are no fruits or vegetables, folic acids may be lacking in the diet of Huang and to compensate for this so as to prevent giving birth to a child with spina bifida, it is advised that she takes folic acid supplements daily.