AP NewsWatch

I'm Ben Thomas with an AP News Minute.

California's requiring fullic acid be added to corn flour used to make tortillas.

Fullic acid is a crucial vitamin, and California is the first state to require food companies

to add it to corn mosa flour used to make tortillas. It helps of reducing the disproportionately

high rates of rare and severe birth defects in Hispanic infants. When Bakersfield, California

resident Andrea Lopez was younger, she gave birth to a son born with anencephaly. A large

part of his skull was missing. He lived for 10 days. Lopez says she didn't know about the

need for fullic acid, especially in pregnant women and women planning to get pregnant.

You don't ever want to deal with this. Nobody wants to. Nobody should have to if it can be avoided.

And it's such a small thing that we can do for ourselves to mitigate that risk.

Fullic acid is already added to grains and cereals. I'm Donna Water.

And I'm Ben Thomas.