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Biochemical indices of nutritional status in maternal, cord, and early neonatal blood
Insights
Maternal nutritional status impacts infant health, with deficiencies in hemoglobin, vitamin C, iron, and folic acid noted in mothers. These deficiencies and factors like parity can influence nutrient levels in cord blood.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Maternal-Fetal Medicine
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Maternal nutritional status is crucial for fetal development and infant health.
- Biochemical markers provide objective measures of nutrient levels.
- Understanding nutrient transfer from mother to infant is essential for public health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the nutritional status of infants by analyzing biochemical parameters in maternal, cord, and infant blood.
- To identify common nutritional deficiencies in mothers and their potential impact on newborns.
- To explore correlations between maternal and infant nutrient levels and influencing factors like parity and maternal age.
Main Methods:
- Biochemical analysis of maternal venous blood, cord blood, and infant capillary blood (5 days postpartum).
- Measurement of hemoglobin, hematocrit, protein, cholesterol, triglycerides, vitamins A, C, E, folic acid, iron, calcium, and magnesium.
- Statistical analysis to determine correlations and influences of parity and maternal age.
Main Results:
- Significant maternal deficiencies were observed in hemoglobin (3.4%), hematocrit (6.1%), total protein (4.0%), vitamin C (7.0%), iron (3.0%), folic acid (3.6%), and calcium (5.2%).
- Stronger correlations in nutrient levels were found between maternal and cord blood compared to other comparisons.
- Maternal parity and age showed a more pronounced effect on vitamin C in cord blood, and iron levels decreased with increasing parity in both maternal and cord blood.
Conclusions:
- Maternal nutritional status exhibits deficiencies that can be reflected in cord blood nutrient levels.
- Parity and maternal age are factors influencing specific nutrient concentrations in maternal and cord blood.
- These findings highlight the importance of maternal nutrition for optimizing infant health outcomes.
Abstract:
The nutritional status of 556 infants born in good health was measured by selected biochemical parameters in maternal venous blood, in mixed arteriovenous cord blood at delivery, and in infant's capillary blood collected at 5 days. The determinations indicating nutritional status were: Hb, hematocrit, protein, cholesterol, triglycerides, vitamins A, C, E, and folic acid, iron, calcium and magnesium. In maternal venous blood, a significant number of women were found to be deficient; 3.4% had Hb below 9.5 g/dl; 6.1% had hematocrit less than 30%; 4.0% had total protein below 5.5 g/dl; 7.0% had vitamin C below 0.20 mg/dl; 3.0% were deficient in iron (less than 40 microgram/dl), 3.6% in folic acid (less than 2.0 ng/ml) and 5.2% in calcium (less than 7.5 mg/dl). Significant correlations were more frequent between maternal and cord blood than in other comparisons. An influence of parity and maternal age was more evident for vitamin C in cord blood than in maternal venous blood. Iron in maternal and cord blood decreased in relation to parity.