- Supplements don’t raise levels as much for women who give birth in winter
- Vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy is known to harm maternal health
- Experts say levels should be tailored according to individual risk factors
Ben Spencer Medical Correspondent For The Daily Mail
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Pregnant women who are due to give birth over the winter may need to take stronger vitamin D supplements, a major study suggests.
Experts at the universities of Southampton and Oxford found that vitamin levels dropped to a lower level among women with a winter due date than among those who were expected to give birth in the summer.
Women who put on more weight during their pregnancy and those with one of four specific genes were also more likely to have low vitamin D levels, the researchers found.
One in five people in Britain have low levels of vitamin D – which is produced by the skin when it soaks up the sun’s rays.
The effectiveness of vitamin D supplements during pregnancy depends on the season and on the mother’s weight gain, researchers found
The vitamin is particularly important during pregnancy as it is crucial for a baby’s development in the womb, affecting the way the bones and brain grow.
The NHS since 2012 has advised all pregnant women in the UK to consider taking 10 micrograms of vitamin D a day, whatever their circumstances.
But the scientists behind the new research said this advice should initially be raised to 25 micrograms a day for all pregnant women, based on their findings.
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Eventually, they want women to receive customised doses, depending on their due date, weight and genetics, and are planning a new study to determine the best dose for different women.
The researchers, whose work is published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology Metabolism, tracked 829 women from 14 weeks of pregnancy until the delivery of their baby.
Half of the women received a high dose of 25 micrograms a day, with the other half receiving a dummy pill.
Women who gave birth in the summer, who gained less weight during pregnancy tended to have higher levels of vitamin D in the blood than those who delivered in the winter
At the start of the study 60 per cent of the women had low levels of vitamin D in their blood.
By the time they were tested again at 34 weeks, most women who received the supplements had hit healthy levels.
But 18 per cent still had vitamin levels that were too low, despite they fact they were receiving a supplement two and half times stronger than the NHS-recommended dose.
Their levels varied hugely, with women who were due to give birth in the winter and those who had put on weight with particularly likely to have insufficient levels.
A LACK OF VITAMIN D COULD CAUSE DEMENTIA
A lack of vitamin D – which comes from sunshine – could raise your risk of getting dementia, according to research earlier this month.
It is already known that someone’s genetics can raise their danger of developing dementia, as can smoking or being overweight.
But a new study from Edinburgh University has found a lack of sunshine could increase the risk.
People around the world with low vitamin D levels were found to have a higher risk of developing dementia, with researchers suggesting they could in future be advised to take supplements or spend more time outside to protect themselves.
Study leader Professor Nicholas Harvey, of the Medical Research Council epidemiology unit at University of Southampton, said: ‘It is important for pregnant women to have sufficient levels of vitamin D for the health of their baby.
‘Our study findings suggest that in order to optimise vitamin D concentrations through pregnancy, the supplemental dose given may need to be tailored to a woman’s individual circumstances, such as the anticipated season of delivery.’
Professor Cyrus Cooper, of Southampton and Oxford, said the fact that 18 per cent of women with the 25 microgram dose still had insufficient levels suggested that the 10 microgram recommended dose will be far too low for many women.
‘I would like to see the NHS advice raised from 10 micrograms to 25,’ Professor Cooper told the Daily Mail.
But in time, he said women should be given a customised dose, according to their genes and due date.
The team is planning another trial, testing women on different doses depending on their circumstances.
‘Our findings of varied responses to vitamin D supplementation according to individual attributes can be used to tailor approaches to antenatal care,’ Professor Cooper said.
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