0
selected
-
1.
Impact of iron and folic acid supplementation on oxidative stress during pregnancy.
Lymperaki, E, Tsikopoulos, A, Makedou, K, Paliogianni, E, Kiriazi, L, Charisi, C, Vagdatli, E
Journal of obstetrics and gynaecology : the journal of the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. 2015;(8):803-6
Abstract
The aim of the study was to assess serum total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and the impact of supplements on oxidative stress (OS) during pregnancy. Fifty volunteer pregnant women (21-40 years old), in the 12 ± 2 weeks' and 38 ± 2 weeks' gestation of pregnancy (study group), and 25 non-pregnant healthy women (control group) were enrolled. All pregnant women were divided into two age groups (A1: < 35 years and A2: ≥ 35 years) and four groups according to supplementation (B1: iron, B2: folic acid, B3: both and B4: none). Antioxidant activity was assayed using the TAC kit (Cayman Chemical Co.). Level of statistical significance was p < 0.05. Serum TAC values in all pregnant women in the first trimester were significantly lower, as compared with those of the control group. Levels of TAC increased significantly in the third trimester of pregnancy, especially with folic acid or no supplementation. In conclusion, pregnancy is associated with OS, which is promoted by the administration of iron supplementation.
-
2.
Oral administration of lactoferrin increases hemoglobin and total serum iron in pregnant women.
Paesano, R, Torcia, F, Berlutti, F, Pacifici, E, Ebano, V, Moscarini, M, Valenti, P
Biochemistry and cell biology = Biochimie et biologie cellulaire. 2006;(3):377-80
Abstract
Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) during pregnancy continues to be of world-wide concern. IDA is a risk factor for preterm delivery and subsequent low birth weight, and possibly for poor neonatal health. Iron supplementation in pregnancy is a widely recommended practice, yet intervention programs have met with many controversies. In our study, 300 women at different trimesters of pregnancy were enrolled in a trial of oral administration of ferrous sulfate (520 mg once a day) or 30% iron-saturated bovine lactoferrin (bLf) (100 mg twice a day). Pregnant women refusing treatment represented the control group. In this group hemoglobin and total serum iron values measured after 30 d without treatment decreased significantly, especially in women at 18-31 weeks of pregnancy. In contrast, after 30 d of oral administration of bLf, hemoglobin and total serum iron values increased and to a greater extent than those observed in women treated orally for 30 d with ferrous sulfate, independently of the trimester of pregnancy. Unlike ferrous sulfate, bLf did not result in any side effects. These findings lead us to hypothesize that lactoferrin could influence iron homeostasis directly or through other proteins involved in iron transport out of the intestinal cells into the blood.
-
3.
Effects of intense training during and after pregnancy in top-level athletes.
Kardel, KR
Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports. 2005;(2):79-86
Abstract
This study investigates the effects of vigorous exercise during and after pregnancy in top competitive athletes. The hypothesis tested here is that training of sufficiently high volume during pregnancy can maintain initial fitness levels. A second hypothesis, that high-volume training during pregnancy in initially fit women does not pose a health risk for the mother or the fetus, was tested and found to hold in a prior report. The overall aim of the study was to define a safe training regime for the maintenance of fitness in top-level female athletes during pregnancy. Forty-one healthy athletes who had performed exercise regularly prior to conception were followed from gestational week 17 until 12 weeks postpartum while they performed standardized exercise programs. The subjects participated either in a high-volume exercise group (HEG, n=20, 8.4 h week(-1)) or in a medium-volume exercise group (MEG, n=21, 6 h week(-1)). The results show that well-trained women can benefit substantially from training at high volumes during an uncomplicated pregnancy. This can facilitate a rapid return to competitive athletics and physically active life after pregnancy. Guidelines for safe exercise by sufficiently fit women during pregnancy could be modeled on the high-volume exercise regime used here by the HEG.
-
4.
Higher homocysteine concentrations in women undergoing caesarean section under general anesthesia.
Zanardo, V, Caroni, G, Burlina, A
Thrombosis research. 2003;(1-2):33-6
Abstract
To determine whether homocysteine, a risk factor for possible endothelial cell dysfunction, procoagulant effects and premature vascular disease but with a potential nutritional role for fetal and neonatal metabolism and development, is elevated in women at time of elective caesarean section with nitrous oxide general anesthesia. Plasma homocysteine levels were measured in 50 consecutive women, 25 of whom undergoing vaginal delivery and 25 elective caesarean section under nitrous oxide general anesthesia, and in the cord plasma of the respective offspring. Mean (+/-standard deviation) plasma homocysteine levels in the women of the caesarean section group were significantly higher than in the women of the vaginal delivery group (9.77+/-2.3 vs. 6.60+/-2.6 micromol/l, respectively; p<0.02). Cord plasma homocysteine levels in the neonates of the caesarean section group were also significantly higher than in the group of neonates vaginally delivered (9.47+/-3.94 and 7.36+/-2.35 micromol/l; p<0.01). Maternal homocysteine levels significantly correlated with cord levels of caesarean and vaginally delivered neonates (r=0.57; p<0.01 and r=0.66; p<0.001, respectively). Homocysteine levels were elevated at time of delivery in women undergoing elective caesarean section in nitrous oxide general anesthesia, and cord levels of corresponding neonates were affected by mode of delivery. Future studies are necessary to identify factors involved in the hyperhomocysteinemia observed in pregnant women at time of delivery by elective caesarean section in general anesthesia.
-
5.
Bioavailability of iron in two prenatal multivitamin/multimineral supplements.
Dawson, EB, Evans, DR, McGanity, WJ, Conway, ME, Harrison, DD, Torres-Cantu, FM
The Journal of reproductive medicine. 2000;(5):403-9
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To determine the iron bioavailability in two popular prenatal multivitamin/multimineral supplement tablets containing 27 mg elemental iron. STUDY DESIGN Iron absorption during an eight-hour period following ingestion of a multivitamin/multimineral formulation, both fasting and with a standardized meal, was measured in a group of 30 pregnant women (24-32 weeks of gestation) and statistically compared. The prenatal formulations were Stuartnatal Plus and Materna (Wyeth-Ayerst Pharmaceuticals, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), and each contains 27 mg of elemental iron. A placebo was included in the study for the control group in this crossover, single-blind study. RESULTS The net iron bioavailability (mean +/- SE) of Stuartnatal Plus and Materna, accounting for diurnal variation, and the iron ingested with the standardized meal was 5.4 +/- 0.4 and 4.6 +/- 0.2 mg, respectively, while fasting and 2.9 +/- 0.4 and 2.7 +/- 0.4 mg, respectively, postprandially. The total amount of iron absorption in the fasting states from both prenatal formulations exceeded the 3 mg of supplemental iron absorption per day recommended by the National Academy of Sciences. CONCLUSION The results of this study indicate that these two prenatal multivitamin/multimineral formulations provide > 3.0 mg of supplemental iron absorption (fasting) as recommended by the National Academy of Sciences and 2.7 mg of iron absorption above the levels achieved following ingestion of a standard, low-iron test meal.