Florida State University researchers have found that increasing dietary folic acid in mice can prevent peripheral neuropathy, a condition often linked to diabetes and other health issues. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Folic acid, a synthetic form of vitamin B9, is essential for DNA synthesis and nerve protection. Low levels of folate are associated with birth defects and greater risk or severity of peripheral neuropathy, which causes numbness, tingling, burning sensations, and weakness—symptoms commonly starting in the hands and feet. While diabetes is a frequent cause, peripheral neuropathy can also result from infections, injuries, vitamin deficiencies, or toxins.
Patrick Stover, professor at FSU’s College of Medicine and founding director of the Institute for Connecting Nutrition and Health (ICON-Health), led the research. He explained: “Historically, the government’s Recommended Daily Allowances set the minimum amount of a nutrient you should have to maintain adequate nutrient status and function. If the population is found to be deficient in a particular nutrient, then efforts are undertaken to fortify the food supply with that nutrient to avoid deficiencies.”
Stover noted examples such as Vitamin D-fortified milk and yogurt or iodized salt. He added: “Nutrient- and food-based dietary guidelines are derived with the assumption of a healthy population, and how much of each nutrient you need to stay healthy. The problem is that a lot of the population is not healthy. Many suffer from chronic diseases, often related to obesity, so guidance may need to be reconsidered in terms of impact on those who may have different requirements.”
The mouse model used by researchers showed that high-dose folic acid prevented peripheral neuropathy among highly susceptible mice.
Regan Bailey—a co-author on the study—said: “This work is very exciting, and any nutritional strategies that can be leveraged to avoid disease risk and mitigate human suffering are critical.” Bailey is also a professor at FSU’s Department of Behavioral Sciences and Social Medicine.
Folic acid supplementation has been prescribed individually to prevent neural tube defects (NTDs) during early pregnancy but is not routinely added to foods since it is unnecessary for those not pregnant.
The study further revealed that both peripheral neuropathy and NTDs share genetic origins.
Robert J. Cousins from University of Florida commented: “Dr. Stover pioneered the development of mouse models that demonstrate, biochemically, the responsiveness of supplemental folate to correct developmental defects in the developing nervous system.”
Peripheral neuropathy affects millions in America. According to recent estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 40.1 million people had diabetes as of 2023—with over one quarter undiagnosed.
The Cleveland Clinic reports about half of all people with diabetes experience some degree of peripheral neuropathy; prevention could improve their quality of life as well as for cancer patients experiencing similar symptoms due either to cancer itself or chemotherapy toxins.
According to MD Anderson Cancer Center, between 30%–40% percent of cancer patients develop peripheral neuropathy annually; while it sometimes resolves after treatment ends for cancer patients without diabetes there are fewer options available for diabetics beyond symptom management.
Martha Field from Cornell University stated: “Disease can affect nutrient needs by altering nutrient absorption, transport or utilization… It is exciting to see here that meeting those needs also alters disease-related physiological outcomes in diabetic peripheral neuropathy.”
Stover said he plans clinical trials in Tallahassee: “If we see the same results in humans—which we believe we will based on literature that’s out there and what we’ve shown in this paper—that will change the standard of care… This is exciting stuff.”
Other contributors included Joydeep Chakraborty (lead author), Adhideb Ghosh (University of Zurich), Eunice B. Awuah (Cornell), Sally P. Stabler (University Colorado), along with Stover himself.
