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Review
. 2024 Oct 31;16(21):3725.
doi: 10.3390/nu16213725.

Associations of Maternal Nutritional Status and Supplementation with Fetal, Newborn, and Infant Outcomes in Low-Income and Middle-Income Settings: An Overview of Reviews

Doris González-Fernández  1 , Oviya Muralidharan  1 , Paulo A Neves  1 , Zulfiqar A Bhutta  1
Affiliations
Review

Associations of Maternal Nutritional Status and Supplementation with Fetal, Newborn, and Infant Outcomes in Low-Income and Middle-Income Settings: An Overview of Reviews

Doris González-Fernández et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Background/objectives: Despite advances in maternal nutritional knowledge, the effect of maternal diet, micronutrient status and undernutrition, and the effect of maternal supplementation on fetal, neonatal and infant outcomes still have gaps in the literature. This overview of reviews is intended to assess the available information on these issues and identify the main maternal nutritional factors associated with offspring outcomes in low- and middle-income countries as possible targets for public health interventions.

Methods: The literature search was performed in Medline (PubMed) and Cochrane Library datasets in June 2024. Pre-specified outcomes in offspring were pooled using standard meta-analytical methods.

Results: We found consistent evidence on the impact of maternal undernutrition indicated by low body mass index (BMI), mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), and stature, but not of individual micronutrient status, on intrauterine-growth retardation, preterm birth, low birth weight, and small for gestational age, with research showing a possible effect of maternal undernutrition in later child nutritional status. Studies on micronutrient supplementation showed possible beneficial effects of iron, vitamin D, and multiple micronutrients on birthweight and/or decreasing small for gestational age, as well as a possible effect of calcium on preterm birth reduction. Interventions showing more consistent beneficial outcomes were balanced protein-energy and lipid base supplements, which demonstrated improved weight in newborns from supplemented mothers and a decreased risk of adverse neonatal outcomes.

Conclusions: Further research is needed to identify the benefits and risks of maternal individual micronutrient supplementation on neonatal and further child outcomes.

Keywords: intrauterine growth restriction; low birthweight; maternal under-nutrition; prenatal supplementation; preterm birth; small for gestational age.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The funders had no role in the design of this study, in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data, in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Environmental and maternal pathways known to affect fetal, newborn, and infant growth.
Figure 2
Figure 2
PRISMA Flow Diagram.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Map showing the distribution and number of low- and middle-income countries included in reviews on associations of maternal nutritional status or supplementation with fetal, neonatal, and infant outcomes.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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