Abstract
Objective To investigate the effects of cod-liver oil on metabolic status and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Methods This study was a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial with the allocation ratio of 1 : 1. The contents of EPA and DHA in cod-liver oil were measured using a gas chromatograph. A total of 550 GDM patients were randomly divided into the intervention group (cod-liver oil) and the control group (placebo, mineral oil), and both groups were given regular dietary care. Glycosylated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-hour plasma glucose (2hPG), lipid profiles, homeostatic model assessment insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and hs-CRP were measured. Primary outcomes were different in HbA1c, FPG, 2hPG, and HOMA-IR between the two groups after 4-week randomization. Secondary outcomes were the blood glucose levels and perinatal complications (pregnancy-induced hypertension, polyhydramnios, premature delivery, postpartum hemorrhage, postpartum infection, premature rupture of membranes, and cesarean section) between the two groups before and after 12-16 weeks of cod-liver oil intervention from middle pregnancy to late pregnancy. Results EPA and DHA were the main components of cod-liver oil with 76 mg/mL and 150 mg/mL, respectively. There was no significant difference for primary outcomes in the levels of HbA1c, FPG, 2hPG, HOMA-IR, and lipid profiles between the two groups (P > 0.05). For the secondary outcomes, the levels of HbA1c, FPG, 2hPG, triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (LDL-C), HOMA-IR, and hs-CRP in the intervention group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P < 0.05). The incidence of perinatal complications in the intervention group was lower than that in the control group too (P < 0.05). Conclusions Cod-liver oil consumption effectively reduced the levels of blood glucose, lipid levels, hs-CRP, and HOMA-IR and the incidence of perinatal complications.
Highlights
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a disease that occurs during pregnancy
gas chromatography (GC) analysis showed that the eluting time of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) was at 18.9 min and 249.6 min, respectively (Figure 1(a))
EPA and DHA are the main components of cod-liver oil (Figure 1(b)), suggesting that cod-liver oil exerts its protective function for GDM mainly via EPA and DHA since they are the main components of omega-3, which was found to reduce the levels of fasting plasma glucose (FPG), homeostatic model assessment insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in the women with GDM [9]
Summary
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a disease that occurs during pregnancy. GDM affects 9.8%–25.5% of pregnant women in the world, and the GDM incidence rate was approximately 17.5% in China [1]. It is caused by varying degrees of impaired glucose tolerance [2] and different degrees of hyperglycemia caused by diabetes [3]. With the improvement of people’s living standards and changes in dietary structure, the incidence of GDM in. GDM can have a great impact on the health of the mother and the fetus, leading to adverse pregnancy outcomes. Dietary intervention can effectively control the blood glucose level of patients and reduce the occurrence of perinatal maternal and child complications [5]
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