Expectant mothers consuming iron and folic acid supplements during their pregnancy are more likely to bear smarter, brighter, and well organized children than those who do not take the supplements, reveals a recent study by U.S. researchers. Developing communities where iron deficiency is quite common must ensure the availability of the basic supplements during pregnancy in order to improve the educational future of their youth, the researchers suggest.
Iron deficiency, the most common nutritional deficiency worldwide, can retard nerve development, biochemistry, metabolism growth as well as affect the intellectual and fine motor skills in the developing child. "Iron is essential for the development of the central nervous system," said Parul Christian, an expert in international health at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, whose study appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
"Early iron deficiency can alter neuroanatomy, biochemistry, and metabolism, leading to changes in neurophysiologic processes that support cognitive and sensorimotor development," Cristian added.
The study details
The study which took place in rural Nepal looked at 676 school children aged between 7 to 9 years from June 2007 to April 2009.
The mothers of these children had been a part of a community-based randomized controlled trial for prenatal micro nutrient supplementation.
"We had the opportunity to follow the offspring of women who had participated in a randomized trial of iron and folic acid and other micronutrients to assess neurocognitive function and outcomes," Christian said in a telephone interview.
The children were divided into random groups. The first group received daily iron supplements, the second was given folic acid and zinc while the third was given multiple micro nutrients containing these supplements in addition to 11 other micro nutrients.
The universal nonverbal intelligence test (UNIT) was used to evaluate the intellectual functioning of the kids while their motor functioning was assessed with the help of a test known as Movement Assessment Battery for Children (MABC).
The study results
Children belonging to mothers who had received regular iron and folic acid supplements were associated with greater general intellectual ability, executive function, and fine motor controls. "What we showed is prenatal iron and folic acid supplementation had a significant impact on the offspring's intellectual level and motor ability and ability during school age, which was a very exciting finding," Christian said. The results are published in the Dec. 22/29 issue of the 'Journal of the American Medical Association.'