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Modifying Levels of Maternal Dietary Folic Acid or Choline to Study the Impact of Deficiencies on Offspring Health Outcomes
03:19

Modifying Levels of Maternal Dietary Folic Acid or Choline to Study the Impact of Deficiencies on Offspring Health Outcomes

Published on: June 28, 2024

Is folic acid supplementation really necessary in preterm infants ≤ 32 weeks of gestation?

Mehmet Yekta Oncel1, Erhan Calisici, Ramazan Ozdemir

  • 1*Division of Neonatology, Zekai Tahir Burak Maternity Teaching Hospital, Ankara †Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, Inönü University School of Medicine, Malatya ‡Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, Ankara University School of Medicine §Department of Biostatistics, Hacettepe University, Faculty of Medicine.

Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition
|September 21, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Preterm infants fed fortified diets or preterm formula had adequate folate levels. Human breast milk alone may pose a risk for folate deficiency, particularly if mothers smoke or don't supplement folic acid.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatology
  • Nutritional Science
  • Pediatric Nutrition

Background:

  • Preterm infants are at risk for nutritional deficiencies.
  • Folate is crucial for infant development.
  • Feeding modalities can impact nutrient levels in preterm infants.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine folate deficiency in hospitalized preterm infants.
  • To assess the impact of feeding methods on serum folate levels.

Main Methods:

  • 162 preterm infants (≤32 weeks gestation) were studied.
  • Serum folate levels were measured at 14, 28 days, and 36 weeks postconception.
  • Infants were fed human breast milk (HBM), fortified HBM (fHBM), or preterm formula (PF).

Main Results:

  • No folate deficiency was observed in any group.
  • fHBM and PF groups showed higher serum folate levels at 36 weeks compared to HBM alone.
  • Maternal folic acid supplementation and smoking significantly affected infant folate levels early postnatally.

Conclusions:

  • Parenteral nutrition with adequate folic acid prevents deficiency in preterm infants.
  • Exclusive HBM or low-folate PF may increase deficiency risk, especially with maternal smoking or lack of prenatal folic acid supplementation.
Abstract

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