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You are here:    Home arrow Pregnancy arrow During Pregnancy arrow Get vitamin D during pregnancy from sunlight; even benefit for your future child
Get vitamin D during pregnancy from sunlight; even benefit for your future child
Balanced energy/protein supplementation improves foetal growth and may reduce the risk of foetal and neonatal death in nutritionally vulnerable women or those at risk for low birth weight children. High-protein supplementation alone is not beneficial and it is associated with an increased risk of small for gestational age (SGA). Energy/protein restriction for pregnant women who are overweight or exhibit high weight gain is unlikely to be beneficial and may be harmful to the infant.

Dietary supplementation with folic acid, before conception and up to 12 weeks of gestation, reduces the risk of neural tube defects (anencephaly, spina bifida).Calcium supplementation appears to reduce the risk of high blood pressure in pregnancy, particularly for women at high-risk and in communities with low calcium intake.Based on the possible association between maternal anaemia and negative perinatal outcome , it is assumed that iron supplementing in anaemic pregnant women may reduce the incidence of low birth weight and perinatal mortality, as well as adverse maternal outcomes.

Your body needs vitamin D, a fat-soluble vitamin, to maintain proper levels of calcium and phosphorus that help build your baby's bones and teeth. A new study shows that you need Vitamin D to grow your baby well.Morever It is suggested that regular Vitamin D supplementation in pre-pregnancy diets decreases the chances of deficiencies in adolescence. More importantly, it is known to reduce the likelihood of rickets with pelvic malformations which make normal delivery impossible.

An "extremely high" proportion of pregnant women living in the northern United States, and their newborns, have  insufficient vitamin D levels, and taking prenatal vitamins may not increase vitamin D levels adequately.

The major biologic function of vitamin D is to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus. Vitamin D aids in the absorption of calcium, helping to form and maintain strong bones. Recently, research also suggests vitamin D may provide protection from osteoporosis, hypertension, cancer, and several autoimmune diseases.

That's according to University of Pittsburgh researchers who assessed the vitamin D status of 200 black and 200 white pregnant women and their newborns living in Pittsburgh.

"In our study, more than 80 percent of African-American women and nearly half of the white women tested at delivery had levels of vitamin D that were too low, even though more than 90 percent of them used prenatal vitamins during pregnancy," Dr. Lisa M. Bodnar said in a university statement.

"The numbers also were striking for their newborns," Bodnar said, with 92 percent of African-American babies and 66 percent of white infants found to have inadequate vitamin D concentrations in their blood at birth.

"While black women and their newborns clearly carried the burden of vitamin D deficiency, white women were not immune to this problem," Bodnar told Reuters Health.

"My colleagues and I expected vitamin D insufficiency to occur frequently in our population, but we had no idea the rates would be this staggering," she added.

Writing in The Journal of Nutrition, the researchers say the finding of widespread vitamin D insufficiency in spite of prenatal vitamins is troubling and suggests that higher doses, different vitamin formulations, or a moderate increase in sunlight exposure in northern latitudes might be needed to boost vitamin D to healthier levels.

In a commentary, Marjorie L. McCullough of the American Cancer Society, Atlanta, says the Pittsburgh study provides "compelling evidence" that current formulations of prenatal vitamins fail to achieve adequate vitamin D levels.

This study is timely, McCullough adds, due to the reemergence in the US of rickets -- a condition marked by a softening and malformation of the bones that arises from deficiency of vitamin D.

"Very healthy people may have poor vitamin D status," Bodnar said. "This condition is extremely common -- even in non-pregnant adults and older children -- and is associated with serious health outcomes like cancer, heart disease, skeletal problems, asthma, schizophrenia, and type 1 diabetes."

She concluded: "Most of the food that we eat contains relatively modest amounts of vitamin D, so the best way to get enough is by taking 1000 international units of vitamin D3 per day in the form of a supplement."

Vitamin D is very important both to prevent rickets in your newborn baby and to keep your teeth and bones healthy.Vitamin D is also known as the "sunshine vitamin" because the body manufactures the vitamin after being exposed to sunshine. Ten to 15 minutes of sunshine 3 times weekly is adequate to produce the body's requirement of vitamin D. Try to spend as much time as you can outdoors, especially in sunny weather: vitamin D is produced in your skin when you are exposed to sunlight (without sunscreen ).

Vitamin D is found also in foods, such as oily fish, eggs, butter or a few glasses of milk , and fortified margarine during pregnancy and while nursing. In the Northern parts of Europe with low amounts of sunlight  you may be prescribed supplements by your doctor,especially during the winter months.

If you live in a geographic region where you don't see the sun for a substantial portion of the year (northern latitudes in Europe, for example) and you also rarely or never drink vitamin-fortified milk, your healthcare provider may recommend a supplement.

Contrary to a sometimes often quoted saying, you do not have to “eat for two” - or double the amount of food you normally eat. From about the 3rd month of pregnancy you need ONLY an extra 200-300 kcal per day in addition to the diet you ate before you became pregnant. This small extra amount can be achieved, by eating for example 2-3 slices of bread extra (or 1 glass of milk and 1-2 slices of bread extra) per day.

A healthy diet is one that is based mainly on plant foods. Therefore it is important to eat lots of vegetables, fruits, bread, potatoes, pasta, cereals, beans and lentils accompanied by only relatively small amounts of: low fat milk, cheeses, kefir and yogurts; fish, lean red meats, and poultry. Whenever possible try to get locally grown vegetables and fruits, especially when they are in season. These can be less expensive, more nutrient dense, fresh and safe from contamination.

Even women who eat healthfully every day may miss out on key nutrients. A daily prenatal vitamin — ideally starting before conception — can help fill any gaps. Your health care provider may recommend special supplements if you follow a strict vegetarian diet or have any chronic health conditions.