Offspring whose mothers had been supplemented with iron-folic acid during pregnancy had dramatically reduced mortality through age 7, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Researchers found that other supplement combinations, including the multiple micronutrient supplement, did not confer the same benefit. Nearly 40 percent of pregnant women worldwide are estimated to be anemic. Although there is an international policy for antenatal iron-folic acid supplementation, coverage and use of this antenatal intervention is low in many developing countries. The results are featured in the September 24 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.
"In a setting where maternal iron deficiency and anemia are common, we found a 31 percent reduction in childhood mortality due to maternal antenatal and postnatal supplementation with iron-folic acid compared to a control," said Parul Christian, DrPH, MSc, lead author of the study and an associate professor in the Bloomberg School's Department of International Health. "A reduction in mortality resulting from an intervention, such as iron-folic acid supplementation during pregnancy, provides a new and previously unreported evidence of benefit to offspring during childhood. To our knowledge this is the first time the long-term effects of maternal iron-folic acid supplementation on childhood survival have been examined."