"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine": maternal vitamin D status and supplementation in pregnancy and their effect on neonatal and childhood outcomes.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to summarize the evidence on the importance of vitamin D in maintaining optimal health during pregnancy, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, particularly its role in calcium homeostasis and associated outcomes.
Results Summary
The study found that inadequate vitamin D concentrations during pregnancy are linked to various perinatal complications and adverse neonatal outcomes, including preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, low birth weight, and impaired immune and skeletal growth. Observational studies suggest maternal vitamin D plays a critical role in offspring neural, musculoskeletal, and bone health.
Population
Pregnant women, infants, children, and adolescents.
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vitamin D | neutral | calcium homeostasis | - | - | plays a crucial role in regulating | #1 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | perinatal complications | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #2 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | adverse neonatal outcomes | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #3 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | preeclampsia | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #4 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | gestational diabetes mellitus | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #5 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | increased rates of cesarean section | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #6 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | low birth weight | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #7 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | small-for-gestational-age infants | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #8 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | poor immune and skeletal growth | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #9 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | allergies | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #10 |
inadequate Vitamin D concentrations | increase | respiratory infections | pregnancy | - | have been associated with | #11 |
maternal Vitamin D | neutral | neural, musculoskeletal, and psychomotor growth | the offspring | - | underlined the important role of | #12 |
maternal Vitamin D | neutral | bone health | the offspring | - | underlined the important role of | #13 |
Vitamin D (VD) plays a crucial role in regulating calcium homeostasis, while the wealth of its pleiotropic actions is gaining increasing research interest. Sufficient VD concentrations are of clinical relevance, particularly in the context of physiological alterations, such as those occurring during pregnancy when maternal VD is the sole source for the developing fetus. As a result, inadequate VD concentrations in pregnancy have been associated with perinatal complications and adverse neonatal outcomes, including preeclampsia, gestational diabetes mellitus, increased rates of cesarean section, low birth weight, small-for-gestational-age infants, poor immune and skeletal growth, allergies, and respiratory infections. Over the past few decades, several observational studies have underlined the important role of maternal VD in the neural, musculoskeletal, and psychomotor growth and bone health of the offspring. However, the complexity of the factors involved in regulating and assessing VD homeostasis, including race, sun exposure, dietary habits, and laboratory measurement techniques, makes the interpretation of relevant research findings challenging. The aim of this narrative review is to summarize the evidence on the importance of VD in maintaining optimal health during pregnancy, infancy, childhood, and adolescence.