Pregnancy

REVIEW our Selected Pregnancy Articles in 2006. Stay informed and updated!

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Pregnancy

Nutrition and Supplements

NEWS:

Apples during pregnancy protects baby from asthma "A new study suggests that women who eat apples while pregnant may protect their child from developing asthma and related symptoms."

Birth Defects Depend on Vitamin A

Doctors fear rickets resurgence “Pregnant or breastfeeding women have been urged to boost their vitamin D intake amid warnings that cases of rickets in children are increasing. …Doctors want pregnant women to take more vitamin D during winter months. … "If a pregnant or breastfeeding woman is lacking in vitamin D, the baby will also have low vitamin D and calcium levels which can lead babies to develop seizures in the first months of life." “

Eating Apples, Fish During Pregnancy Protects Kids From Allergies, Asthma "Filling up on apples and fish during pregnancy might protect your child from developing asthma and allergic diseases, a new study shows. Researchers from the Netherlands and Scotland have found that eating apples throughout pregnancy may protect against wheezing and asthma in 5-year-old children, while fish consumption may lower the risk of eczema, an allergic skin condition."

Fish During Pregnancy Helps Child's Development "Children whose mothers ate at least three servings of fish a week during pregnancy had higher scores in tests of mental function in their early years."

Low cholesterol diet improves blood flow in fetus "Consuming a low-cholesterol, low-fat diet during pregnancy seems to have a beneficial effect on blood flow in the fetus, Norwegian researchers report."

Low vitamin A linked to small infant kidneys "Mothers will low levels of vitamin A during pregnancy have an increased chance of giving birth to an infant with small kidneys, new research suggests."

Maternal Multivitamin Use Cuts Risk of Low Birth Weight in Developing Countries "In a study of pregnant women in Tanzania, multivitamin supplementation seemed to reduce the occurrence of low birth weight and small-for-gestational age (SGA) births, but had no effect on prematurity or fetal death."

Milk intake in pregnancy.

Mothers again urged to eat fish "Pregnant and breast-feeding women should eat at least 12 ounces of fish and seafood per week to ensure their babies' optimal brain development, a coalition of top scientists from private groups and federal agencies plans to declare today in a public advisory that marks a major break with current U.S. health advice. The scientists' conclusion is at odds with the standard government advice issued in 2001 that new mothers and mothers-to-be should eat no more than 12 ounces of seafood per week because of concerns about mercury contamination."

Mother's diet affects cleft-palate risk in baby "Pregnant women who eat a meat-rich, fruit-poor diet may be doubling their baby's likelihood of being born with a cleft lip or cleft palate, Dutch researchers report. Women with this so-called Western-style diet also tended to report unhealthier habits, such as smoking or drinking, the researchers found. … Some studies have found an increased risk of having a child with cleft lip or palate among women with low levels of B vitamins, Steegers-Theunissen and her team note in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology."

Neonatal Vitamin D Status at Birth at Latitude 32 Degrees 72': Evidence of Deficiency "Season and latitude are also related to the risk of vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D levels vary according to season and latitude due to variation in cutaneous photosynthesis of previtamin D.[16,17] Humans receive vitamin D in two ways—through the diet with vitamin D supplements and vitamin D-fortified foods such as milk, or through sun exposure. Ultraviolet B (UVB) light exposure leads to creation of previtamin D from 7-dehydrocholesterol which begins the path to active vitamin D formation.[16,17,18] In 1988, Webb and colleagues[17] demonstrated that the range of UVB light that allows vitamin D formation is not achieved in the northern latitudes of the United States or in Canada during the winter months."

Prenatal Vitamins Linked to Healthier Babies

Risking kids to sell fish: An ad campaign encouraging pregnant women to eat seafood is a case study in industry-driven 'research.' "… timely and accurate information is crucial for those who want to make healthy and affordable choices. … For years, the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency have advised women who are pregnant, might become pregnant or are breast-feeding to eat no more than 12 ounces weekly of any type of fish or shellfish that could be high in mercury, a potent neurotoxin. … But it's hard to stop a powerful, if troubling, marketing strategy once commercial interests take over. The National Fisheries Institute… paid the travel expenses of the researchers who generated the report for the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition and gave each of them … The misleading report is a classic example of industry-driven marketing under the cloak of scientific research. Fortunately for consumers, however, the FDA and EPA have just repeated their strong stance on the dangers posed by overconsumption of certain fish, which should help derail the effort to promote sales over children's health. … And the selective repackaging of science, combined with slick marketing to sell more fish to pregnant women and women of childbearing age, show the height of corporate irresponsibility. This is one fishy marketing scheme that consumers should throw back."

Want to Raise a Fruit-and-Veggie Lover? Be Persistent "If you want your baby to love fruits and veggies later in life, offer plenty of opportunities to try both as you introduce your infant to solid foods, new research suggests. And mom, eat plenty of fruits and veggies while you're pregnant and breast-feeding so you'll help to pass on the preference for these healthy foods. Those are the findings of a new study published in the December issue of Pediatrics. "

ARTICLES:

Eating For Two

Healthy Eating During Pregnancy

Zinc supplementation for improving pregnancy and infant outcome. (Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2007) "AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: The 14% relative reduction in preterm birth for zinc compared with placebo was primarily in the group of studies involving women of low income and this has some relevance in areas of high perinatal mortality. There was no convincing evidence that zinc supplementation during pregnancy results in other useful and important benefits. Since the preterm association could well reflect poor nutrition, studies to address ways of improving the overall nutritional status of populations in impoverished areas, rather than focusing on micronutrient and or zinc supplementation in isolation, should be an urgent priority."

JOURNAL ARTICLES:

Association of subclinical vitamin D deficiency in newborns with acute lower respiratory infection and their mothers. (Eur J Clin Nutr. 2007) "Conclusions:Our findings suggest that newborns with subclinical vitamin D deficiency may have an increased risk of suffering from ALRI. The strong positive correlation between newborns' and mothers' 25(OH)D concentrations shows that adequate vitamin D supplementation of mothers should be emphasized during pregnancy especially in winter months."

[Calcium-supplementation in pregnancy--is it a must?] (Ther Umsch. 2007) "Therefore calcium supplementation is only recommended in order to achieve a daily uptake of at least 1000 mg/day in pregnant women."

Carnitine deficiency in pregnancy. (Obstet Gynecol. 2007)

Clinical and Biological Consequences of Iodine Deficiency during Pregnancy. (Endocr Dev. 2007)

Effect of maternal calcium intake during pregnancy on children blood pressure: A systematic review of the literature. (BMC Pediatr. 2007) "Calcium supplementation during pregnancy is simple and inexpensive and may be a way to reduce the risk of hypertension and its sequels in the next generation."

Elevated Prenatal Homocysteine Levels as a Risk Factor for Schizophrenia (Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2007) "Conclusions These findings indicate that elevated third-trimester homocysteine levels may be a risk factor for schizophrenia. Elevated third-trimester homocysteine levels may elevate schizophrenia risk through developmental effects on brain structure and function and/or through subtle damage to the placental vasculature that compromises oxygen delivery to the fetus. If future studies both replicate this association and support a causal link, then the use of folic acid supplementation would merit evaluation as a strategy for prevention of schizophrenia in offspring."

Folate and neural tube defects. (Am J Clin Nutr. 2007)

Iron supplementation during pregnancy: what are the risks and benefits of current practices? (Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2007)

Maternal Fish Consumption, Mercury Levels, and Risk of Preterm Delivery (Environ Health Perspect. 2007)

Maternal fish intake during pregnancy and atopy and asthma in infancy. (Clin Exp Allergy. 2007) "Conclusion Our data suggest a protective effect of fish intake during pregnancy on the risk of atopy-related outcomes."

Maternal flaxseed diet during pregnancy or lactation increases female rat offspring's susceptibility to carcinogen-induced mammary tumorigenesis. (Reprod Toxicol. 2007) "Flaxseed contains several dietary components that have been linked to low breast cancer risk; i.e., n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), lignans and fiber, but it also contains detectable levels of cadmium, a heavy metal that activates the estrogen receptor (ER). … Our data indicated that both in utero and postnatal 5% and 10% flaxseed exposures shortened mammary tumor latency, and 10% flaxseed exposure increased tumor multiplicity, compared to the controls."

Maternal intake of vitamin D during pregnancy and risk of recurrent wheeze in children at 3 y of age (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2007) "Conclusion:In the northeastern United States, a higher maternal intake of vitamin D during pregnancy may decrease the risk of recurrent wheeze in early childhood."

Maternal seafood consumption in pregnancy and neurodevelopmental outcomes in childhood (ALSPAC study): an observational cohort study. (Lancet. 2007) " INTERPRETATION: Maternal seafood consumption of less than 340 g per week in pregnancy did not protect children from adverse outcomes; rather, we recorded beneficial effects on child development with maternal seafood intakes of more than 340 g per week, suggesting that advice to limit seafood consumption could actually be detrimental. These results show that risks from the loss of nutrients were greater than the risks of harm from exposure to trace contaminants in 340 g seafood eaten weekly."

Maternal vitamin D status during pregnancy and child outcomes. (Eur J Clin Nutr. 2007)

Milk consumption during pregnancy is associated with increased infant size at birth: prospective cohort study. (Am J Clin Nutr. 2007)

Multimicronutrient Supplementation for Undernourished Pregnant Women and the Birth Size of Their Offspring: A Double-blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial. (Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2007) "CONCLUSION: Compared with iron and folic acid supplementation, the administration of multimicronutrients to undernourished pregnant women may reduce the incidence of low birth weight and early neonatal morbidity."

Omega-3 fatty acid supplementation during pregnancy: for mother, baby, or neither? (Can Fam Physician. 2007)

The Effects of Fish Oil Supplementation in Pregnancy on Breast Milk Fatty Acid Composition Over the Course of Lactation: A Randomized, Controlled Trial. (Pediatr Res. 2007)

The Effects of Prenatal Use of Folic Acid and Other Dietary Supplements on Early Child Development. (Matern Child Health J. 2007) "CONCLUSIONS: Study results suggest that while prenatal folic acid supplementation may improve development at 3 years of age, further research is needed in this regard. The results also emphasize the importance of further research into the use of prenatal calcium and zinc supplementation in a US population."

Vitamin e during pre- and postnatal periods. (Vitam Horm. 2007)

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