Can a woman’s diet in the year before her pregnancy affect her risk of having a child with a birth defect? Recently published research found a significant link (Arch Ped Adol Med 2011: DOI:10.1001/archpediatrics.2011.185).
Researchers evaluated the quality of a woman’s diet using both the Mediterranean Diet Score (encouraging legumes, grains, fruit, nuts, vegetables, fish, more monounsaturated fat than saturated fat and cautioning against over use of dairy, meat, and sweets) and the Diet Quality Index (which follows the USDA’s plan of encouraging grains, vegetables, fruit, folate, iron, and calcium and cautioning against overuse of fats and sweets).
The birth defects reviewed in this study were neural tube defects, which develop in the first few weeks of pregnancy – before a woman may even realize that she is pregnant, and cleft lip or cleft palate, which develop later in the pregnancy.
Women who had high quality diets, using either index, had a significantly lower risk of birth defects than women with a lower quality diet – even after controlling for supplement use. The highest quality diets were associated with an up to 51% lower risk of anencephaly, 34% reduction of cleft lip, and 26% lower odds of cleft palate when compared with the lowest quality diet. Researchers reviewed data both before and after November 1997 (when the US began supplementing food with folic acid) and found similar results.
While this does not indicate that women should stop taking folic acid supplements, it seems to indicate that there are other nutrients that may be equally important in reducing birth defects, or it may be that nutrients work together in ways we don’t yet understand. Folic acid supplementation has significantly decreased the risk of neural tube defects, but adequate folic acid does not prevent all neural tube defects or other birth defects.
So eat a variety of good quality food! Nourish both yourself and your yet-to-be-conceived child! What is a Healthy Pregnancy Diet?
This section contains articles and guidance for healthy eating whether you are working on becoming pregnant, expecting or have a new baby. Articles cover information including what to eat, controlling nausea, breastfeeding and vitamins.