Scientists Discover New Long-Term Benefits of Taking Vitamin D During Pregnancy
Vitamin D throughout pregnancy improves youngsters’s bone strength at age seven, in line with a UK research. The MAVIDOS analysis discovered that prenatal vitamin D supplementation ends in greater bone density in youngsters, suggesting lasting advantages for youngster health.
According to new analysis led by the University of Southampton and University Hospital Southampton (UHS), youngsters whose moms took further vitamin D throughout pregnancy nonetheless have stronger bones at age seven.
Bone density scans revealed that youngsters born to moms who got vitamin D dietary supplements throughout pregnancy have larger bone mineral density in mid-childhood. Their bones comprise extra calcium and different minerals, making them stronger and fewer prone to break.
Researchers say the findings, printed in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, reinforce the significance of vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy as a public health technique.
Dr Rebecca Moon, NIHR Clinical Lecturer in Child Health on the University of Southampton led the evaluation. She mentioned: “Our findings present that the advantages of vitamin D supplementation throughout pregnancy persist into mid-childhood.
“This early intervention represents an important public health strategy. It strengthens children’s bones and reduces the risk of conditions like osteoporosis and fractures in later life.”
The Role of Vitamin D in Bone Health
Vitamin D regulates the quantity of calcium and phosphate within the body – minerals essential for bones, tooth, and muscle health.
In 2009, researchers launched the MAVIDOS study, recruiting over 1000 women from Southampton, Oxford and Sheffield.
During their pregnancy, the women have been randomly allotted to 2 teams: One group took an additional 1,000 International Units per day of vitamin D. The different took a placebo pill every day. The pregnant women, and the medical doctors and midwives taking care of them, didn’t know which group they have been in.
Previous analysis assessed the youngsters’s bone health at 4 years of age and the outcomes confirmed that the kid’s bone mass was larger in youngsters born to moms who had had vitamin D supplementation throughout pregnancy in contrast with those that had not.
In this newest research, the researchers investigated whether or not the consequences on bone health continued into mid-childhood. The workforce adopted up with 454 youngsters aged six to seven. These youngsters have been all born to moms who took half in Southampton.
The outcomes confirmed that the useful impact on youngsters’s bones was comparable at ages 4 and 6 to seven. Pregnant women within the UK are actually routinely suggested to take vitamin D dietary supplements.
Insights into How Vitamin D Affects Fetal Development
The Southampton analysis workforce are half of the MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Centre (MRC LEC) and the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre (BRC).
The MAVIDOS trial has helped the Southampton researchers perceive attainable mechanisms linking maternal vitamin D supplementation with offspring bone mass. In 2018 they demonstrated that the vitamin D supplementation led to modifications within the exercise of genes forming half of the vitamin D pathway.
In 2022, they discovered taking the dietary supplements throughout pregnancy may considerably cut back the possibilities of infants as much as a 12 months outdated suffering from atopic eczema.
They additionally noticed that pregnant women given additional vitamin D have been more likely to have a spontaneous vaginal delivery, or ‘natural’ supply.
Professor Nicholas Harvey is Director of the University’s MRC Lifecourse Epidemiology Centre, Professor of Rheumatology and Clinical Epidemiology and mission lead.
He mentioned: “These findings add to the vital information generated by way of the MAVIDOS trial.
“We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the mothers and children involved. Their contributions have advanced our understanding of vitamin D supplementation and its role in supporting strong and healthy bones.”
Reference: “Pregnancy vitamin D supplementation and offspring bone mineral density in childhood follow-up of a randomized controlled trial” by Rebecca J Moon, Stefania D’ Angelo, Elizabeth M Curtis, Kate A Ward, Sarah R Crozier, Inez Schoenmakers, M Kassim Javaid, Nicholas J Bishop, Keith M Godfrey, Cyrus Cooper and Nicholas C Harvey, 19 September 2024, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajcnut.2024.09.014
The analysis was funded by Versus Arthritis, the Medical Research Council, the National Institute for Health and Care Research and the Bupa Foundation.
