Vitamin C Can Prevent Pregnancy Complication
by: By Maureen Williams, ND
Women who supplement their diet with a small amount of vitamin
C during the second half of pregnancy reduce their risk of one
contributor to premature birth, according to the American Journal
of Clinical Nutrition (2005;81:85963).
The end of pregnancy and the beginning of the birth process
is marked by rupture of the walls (membranes) of the sac that
holds the growing fetus and the amniotic fluid. A healthy pregnancy
usually lasts about 40 weeks. Premature birth occurs when the
membranes rupture and birth begins before 37 weeks of pregnancy.
Smoking, vaginal infection, and poor maternal nutrition can all
increase the risk of premature rupture of the membranes (PROM).
PROM occurs in 10 to 20% of pregnancies worldwide and is the most
common cause of premature births. Babies born prematurely face
many health risks: their underdeveloped lungs do not function
properly, they are highly susceptible to infections, and they
have difficulty nursing.
Studies have suggested that inadequate levels of vitamin C
in the cells of pregnant women might be linked to increased PROM
risk. Vitamin C, an antioxidant nutrient found in fruits and vegetables,
plays an important role in the production and repair of connective
tissues throughout the body and is believed to be critical to
the maintenance of the fetal sac membranes. In one study, women
with high dietary intake of vitamin C were less likely to experience
PROM than women with low intake. The effect of vitamin C supplementation
on risk of PROM has not been previously studied.
In the current study, 120 healthy women who were less than
20 weeks pregnant were randomly assigned to receive either 100
mg of vitamin C per day or placebo. Each woman was evaluated upon
entry to the study and every four weeks from week 20 of their
pregnancy until delivery. PROM incidence was 74% lower in the
women taking vitamin C than in the women receiving placebo (7.69%
versus 24.5%). The incidence of premature births was also lower
in the vitamin C group than in the placebo group (13.4% versus
24%); however, this 44% reduction in risk was not statistically
significant because of the small number of people studied.
The results of this study suggest that supplementing with vitamin
C can reduce the risk of PROM. Since PROM is involved in more
than 40% of all premature births, it is possible that small amounts
of supplemental vitamin C might help prevent premature births.
A larger study is needed to determine this more definitively.
About The Author: Maureen Williams, ND, received her bachelor's
degree from the University of Pennsylvania and her Doctorate of
Naturopathic Medicine from Bastyr University in Seattle, WA. She
has a private practice in Quechee, VT, and does extensive work
with traditional herbal medicine in Guatemala and Honduras. To
find out more about Vitamin C and its health benefits, visit http://www.vitaminherbuniversity.com/.
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