NEW: Program Summary: Global Initiative to Eliminate Folic Acid-preventable Neural Tube Defects

Expansion of global folic acid fortification efforts can have a significant impact on infant mortality and childhood morbidity worldwide. CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) has developed the Global Initiative to Eliminate Folic Acid-Preventable Neural Tube Defects (GIENTD) to significantly reduce infant mortality and childhood morbidity resulting from the more than 300,000 neural tube defect-affected pregnancies worldwide each year. This summary provides details about CDC’s global folic acid efforts.