Relationship Between Iodine Concentration in Maternal Colostrum and Neurobehavioral Development of Infants in
Meiqin Wu1, Deqing Wu2, Wei Wu1
1MOE-Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Insights
Maternal colostrum iodine levels did not significantly impact infant cognitive, language, or motor skills. However, iodine concentration in colostrum was found to predict gross motor development in infants.
Area of Science:
- Human Nutrition
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Endocrinology
Background:
- Iodine is crucial for early neurodevelopment.
- The role of colostrum iodine in infant neurobehavioral development is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between iodine concentration in maternal colostrum and infant neurobehavioral development.
- To determine if colostrum iodine levels predict cognitive, language, or motor development in infants.
Main Methods:
- Colostrum samples from 150 women were analyzed for iodine concentration.
- Infant neurobehavioral development was assessed at 18 months using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-III.
- Statistical analyses were performed to evaluate the relationship between colostrum iodine and infant development scores, adjusting for confounders.
Main Results:
- The median colostrum iodine level was 187.8 μg/L.
- No significant differences in cognitive, language, or motor composite scores were found across varying colostrum iodine levels.
- Colostrum iodine concentration emerged as a significant predictor of gross motor development after adjusting for confounding factors.
Conclusions:
- While overall neurobehavioral development was not directly linked to colostrum iodine levels, a specific association with gross motor skills was identified.
- Further research may clarify the mechanisms underlying iodine's influence on motor development via maternal colostrum.
Abstract:
It is well known that iodine plays an important role in the process of early growth and development of most organs, especially the brain. However, iodine concentration in the colostrum and its association with the neurobehavioral development of infants remains unclear. Colostrums from 150 women were collected, and their iodine concentrations were measured. The median colostrum iodine level was 187.8 μg/L. The Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-III test was performed when the infants were about 18 months. The mean cognitive, language, and motor composite scores were 105.3 ± 9.8, 105.2 ± 11.1, and 104.6 ± 6.7, respectively. And the mean scores of the 5 subtests were 11.1 ± 2.0, 9.3 ± 2.0, 12.4 ± 2.3, 11.1 ± 1.2, and 10.4 ± 1.2, respectively. No statistically significant difference was observed in the cognition, language, or motor development of infants across different levels of colostrum iodine. After adjusting for a range of confounding factors, colostrum iodine concentration was a predictor of motor development, specifically gross motor development.
