Premium
Vitamin B 12 : dietary intake, supplement use and serum concentrations in a cohort of Canadian pregnant women and in umbilical cord blood (135.7)
Author(s) -
Masih Shan,
Plumptre Lesley,
Ly Anna,
Sohn KyoungJin,
Berger Howard,
Lausman Andrea,
Croxford Ruth,
O'Connor Deborah,
Kim YoungIn
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.28.1_supplement.135.7
Subject(s) - pregnancy , medicine , cord blood , gestation , umbilical cord , quartile , offspring , physiology , fetus , obstetrics , endocrinology , immunology , biology , confidence interval , genetics
Optimal maternal intake and blood levels of vitamin B 12 play an important role in fetal development and in health and disease of the offspring. Nonetheless, there is a paucity of data of intake and blood levels of B 12 in Canadian pregnant women and in cord blood. We assessed dietary and supplemental intakes using a food frequency questionnaire and serum B 12 levels in pregnant women between 12‐16 wks gestation (n=342) and at parturition (n=292) and in cord blood (n=259). Mean intake of dietary B 12 was 5.2 ± 3.1 µg/d and 5.2 ± 2.7 µg/d in early and late pregnancy, respectively (RDA= 2.6 µg/d). Additionally, 88% reported using a B 12 ‐containing supplement (usual amount 2.6 µg) during early pregnancy and 83% continued supplement use in late pregnancy. Median serum B 12 concentrations in early pregnancy, at parturition and in cord blood were 220 (inner quartile range: 167,289) pmol/L, 167 (131,208) pmol/L and 314 (223,466) pmol/L, respectively. All participants had plasma homocysteine levels in the normal range (<13 µmol/L) during pregnancy. The prevalence of suboptimal serum B 12 levels (<148 pmol/L) was observed in 17% and 36% of women in early and late pregnancy, respectively. Our data indicate that suboptimal B 12 status, assessed by serum B 12 levels, exists in Canadian women during pregnancy despite adequate B 12 intakes from diet and supplement use. Whether the observed low maternal B 12 levels are functionally significant and impact maternal and fetal health outcomes requires further investigation.