Folic acid fortification in wheat flour - is it here yet?

[tinkerbell22]

Hi everyone, I'm wondering if anyone happens to know if the fortification of wheat flour with folic acid has actually been manufactured into the flour yet as per the regulation change in September I think it was.

I've been checking labels on my foods waiting for it to show up but it's not yet. Perhaps it takes them a while to begin manufacturing it in or perhaps the labelling of ingredients isn't yet up to date, but it's already in the flour.

The reason I ask is that I've had trouble staying asleep recently which is unusual for me. I used to have this symptom when I used to take synthetic vitamin B complex supplements. I am really sensitive to supplements.

So could it be the folic acid has been sneaked in already without correct labelling?

I'm trying to rule out causes of this sleep issue and this is one possibility buzzing round my mind lol.

I know the solution is probably to go wheat/gluten free, re the thyroid anyway. But I've tried this in the past and didn't feel good. So I'm hoping it doesn't come to that.

Thanks for any help or info you can give xx

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

It was only a few years ago, that the full list of ingredients, including mandatory fortificants, was added to all food products. There were circumstances in which it was not required.

I am quite sure that folic acid will be included when it arrives.

At present, a randomly selected bag of flour says:

Homepride Plain Flour 1Kg

100% British Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin)

tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/p...

[tinkerbell22 in reply to helvella]

Thank you so much for this helvella!! So this was bugging me, as I was worried it had been slipped in and not labelled yet. So I emailed one bread provider I use, Warburtons, and they just replied. I thought this might interest some people who are wondering if this fortification will affect them. They said they've not yet been advised about when folic acid will be added. Defra and government are still working on it. So it could be several months until folic acid is in the flour. The info should then be added to labelling, but they've also said to check back with them any time I wish.

So my mysterious sleep issue must be about something else lol! Great to be able to rule this out as a cause for now xx