Interaction between vitamin A and iron: effects of supplements in pregnancy

Very few reports are available on the vitamin A status of Indian pregnant women in the rural population. The present study was carried out to assess the vitamin A status and the effect of vitamin A and iron supplementation in pregnancy on serum vitamin A levels in the rural women. It was observed that serum vitamin A levels showed a marginal decrease with advancing gestation. Though satisfactory as per WHO guidelines, supplementation with 60 mg of iron prevented this decrease. A higher dose of iron (120 mg) actually resulted in a similar vitamin A status as seen in vitamin A supplemented women. If this preliminary study can be confirmed it would appear that interactions between vitamin A and iron in pregnancy have a positive effect on the vitamin A nutriture.