Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2016 Feb 28;115(4):644-9.
doi: 10.1017/S0007114515004870.

Modifying effects of maternal Hb concentration on infant birth weight in women receiving prenatal iron-containing supplements: a randomised controlled trial

Linlin Wang  1 , Zuguo Mei  2 , Hongtian Li  1 , Yali Zhang  1 , Jianmeng Liu  1 , Mary K Serdula  2
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Modifying effects of maternal Hb concentration on infant birth weight in women receiving prenatal iron-containing supplements: a randomised controlled trial

Linlin Wang et al. Br J Nutr. .

Abstract

Concerns have been raised about the benefits of Fe-containing supplements on infant birth weight among women with normal/high Hb levels at baseline. Thus far, no clinical trials have examined whether the effects of prenatal Fe-containing supplements on birth weight vary by maternal Hb levels. We compared the effects of Fe-folic acid (IFA) or multiple micronutrients (MMN) with folic acid (FA) supplements on birth weight among pregnant women with mild/no anaemia or high Hb levels. A double-blind randomised controlled trial was conducted in 2006-2009. In total, 18 775 pregnant women with mild/no anaemia (145 g/l) baseline Hb levels, IFA and MMN supplements increased birth weight by 91·44 (95% CI 3·37, 179·51) g and 107·63 (95% CI 21·98, 193·28) g (P<0·05), respectively, compared with the FA group. No differences were found between the IFA and the MMN group, regardless of maternal Hb concentration. In conclusion, the effects of Fe-containing supplements on birth weight depended on baseline Hb concentrations. The Fe-containing supplements improved birth weight in women with very high Hb levels before 20 weeks of gestation.

Keywords: Birth weight; FA folic acid; High maternal Hb; IFA Fe–folic acid; Iron-containing supplements; LBW low birth weight; MMN multiple micronutrients; RCT randomised controlled trial.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Birth weight by maternal baseline Hb concentration in the study groups. Data are not shown for women with Hb concentrations >160 g/l (n 6, 10, and 10 in folic acid (FA, formula image) iron-FA (IFA, formula image) and multiple micronutrients (MMN, formula image) groups, respectively).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund & World Health Organization (2004) Low Birthweight: Country, Regional and Global Estimates New York: UNICEF.
    1. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development/World Health Organization (2012) Health at a Glance: Asia/Pacific 2012 Paris: OECD Publishing.
    1. World Health Organization (2012) Guideline: Daily Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation in Pregnant Women Geneva: WHO. - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization & United Nations University (2000) Composition of a multi-micronutrient supplement to be used in pilot programmes among pregnant women in developing countries: report of a United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations University (UNU), workshop held at UNICEF Headquarters, New York, 9 July 1999 http://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/75358 (accessed December 2012).
    1. Meier PR, Nickerson HJ, Olson KA, et al. (2003) Prevention of iron deficiency anemia in adolescent and adult pregnancies. Clin Med Res 1, 29–36. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms