High Blood Pressure More Risky for Black Moms-to-Be
 (HealthDayNews, 4/21/04)

Thelma E. Patrick of the University of Pittsburgh and fellow researchers conducted a study of 78 pregnant black women, 26 of whom had preeclampsia, and 85 pregnant white women, 34 of whom had preeclampsia. The investigators found that the black women with pregnancy-induced hypertension had higher blood levels of homocysteine, an amino acid associated with atherosclerosis, and lower levels of folic acid than their white counterparts. While the scientists did not determine whether lifestyle or heredity accounted for this difference between black women and white women, Patrick suggests that black women should increase their intake of folic acid as a possible preventative