Watchdog backs plan to add folic acid to flour

The move could stop 150 babies a year from developing conditions such as spina bifida, the Food Standards Agency said.

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Food experts will decide today whether folic acid should be routinely added to flour

It could also improve the general health of the 13million Britons who do not consume enough of the essential nutrient.

Critics claim, however, that the measure is the latest excess of the nanny state, as it will over-ride consumers' choice on what they eat.

They also fear the fortification of the nation's diet with folic acid could be harmful to some.

There are concerns it can mask a vitamin B12 deficiency in the elderly, which can seriously damage the nervous system.

Some reports even suggest particularly high levels of folic acid might speed up the development of a particular type of cancer.

The FSA believes, however, that the benefits far outweigh these small risks.

Between 700 and 900 babies develop Neural Tube Defects, mainly spina bifida, in the womb.

Around two-thirds of these lead to abortions after the condition is discovered during hospital scans.

Experts on the FSA's board said the fortification of flour would reduce the total by around one in six.

Board member Chrissie Dunn said: "We have a duty of care to make decisions that benefit those families that have been touched by great sadness.

"We have the power to contribute to a decision that might prevent great sadness and provide emotional wellbeing.

"The human cost has to be part of our thinking."

Her colleague Nancy Robson insisted birth defects do not just cause problems for the baby.

"You are talking about the mother, the father, the whole family," she said.

"This over-rides my concerns about the infringement of autonomy and consent."

Dr Patricia Hamilton, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said folic acid fortification would "significantly reduce" the number of children born with brain or spine abnormalities.

Some board members questioned whether it is right to change the diet of 55million Britons to prevent 150 babies developing a tube defect.

The last attempt at mass medication, the addition of fluoride to drinking water, was rejected by most of the population.

Despite the reservations, the proposal won near-unanimous backing.

The FSA wants folic acid to be added to white and brown flour at the milling stage. The only exception would be wholemeal flour.

Food manufacturers would have to stop adding folic acid to breakfast cereals and low-fat spreads to prevent consumers taking too much.

Women planning to have a baby would still need to take supplements in order to ensure they are eating enough folic acid to prevent defects.

The FSA recommendation will now go to health ministers who will have the final decision.

The Association for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus called on the Government to take swift action.

Its executive director, Andrew Russell, said: "Many lives are at stake and ministers must make a rapid decision on this."

But Tory health spokesman Stephen O'Brien said: "Action must be proportionate, not simply taken in deference to Labour's ever widening nanny state."

Folic acid fortification is already compulsory in the U.S., Canada and Chile, where it has cut NTD rates by between 27 per cent and 50 per cent.