CHICAGO (Reuters) -- Folic acid in the diet not only helps prevent birth defects but also improves the survival chances of children born with them, researchers reported on Monday.

A look at more than 2,800 infants born with spina bifida between 1998 and 2001 found that 92 percent of them survived the first year of life. That compared to 90 percent prior to 1998, when folic acid was added to grains for fortification.

"Folic acid may play a role in restricting the severity of neural tube defects in addition to preventing the occurrence (of them)," the study from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment said.

Folic acid is a B vitamin found in leafy green vegetables, fruits and other foods and is widely used as a dietary supplement during pregnancy to prevent spinal and neural birth defects.

The study was published in the March issue of "Pediatrics," the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, along with an editorial which said the findings are another reason to increase the level of folic acid in fortified foods in the United States.

The research "is a stern reminder that, although the severity of spina bifida may have decreased with fortification, too many children continue to develop (it) because our enriched grains do not have enough folic acid," the editorial said.

It called for a doubling of the current level.