Abstract
(1) Background: The nutritional status of women during pregnancy can have a considerable effect on maternal and fetal health, and on the perinatal outcome. Aim: to assess the changes occurring in dietary iodine intake, potassium iodide supplementation, and smoking habit, and the impact of these changes on the urinary iodine concentration (UIC) during pregnancy in a population of women in Catalonia (Spain). (2) Methods: Between 2009–2011, an observational study included a cohort of women whose pregnancies were monitored in the public health system in the Central and North Metropolitan areas of Catalonia. Women received individual educational counseling, a dietary questionnaire was completed, and a urine sample was collected for iodine determination at each trimester visit. (3) Results: 633 (67.9%) women answered the questionnaire at all 3 visits. The percentage of women with a desirable UIC (≥150 μg/L) increased from the first to the second trimester and remained stable in the third (57.3%, 68.9%, 68%; p < 0.001). Analysis of the relationship between UIC ≥ 150 μg/L and the women’s dietary habits showed that the percentage with UIC ≥ 150 μg/L increased with greater consumption of milk in the first trimester, and the same was true for iodized salt use in all three trimesters and iodine supplementation in all three. (4) Conclusion: During pregnancy, increased intake of milk, iodized salt, and iodine supplements were associated with an increase in the UIC.
Highlights
Iodine is an essential nutrient required for synthesizing thyroid hormones which regulate the body’s metabolism, growth, and development
Two recent studies performed in pregnant women in the first trimester, one in Asturias [3] and the other by our group in Catalonia [4], reported median urinary iodine levels of 197 μg/L and 172 μg/L, respectively, both values being within the margins the World
The study was contemplated as part of a clinical trial project to evaluate the efficacy of an educational intervention imparted in groups to promote iodine intake and optimal urinary iodine concentrations
Summary
Iodine is an essential nutrient required for synthesizing thyroid hormones which regulate the body’s metabolism, growth, and development. Iodine requirements increase significantly during pregnancy and lactation, and if the intake is insufficient during these periods, thyroid hormone production can decrease, with consequent repercussions on the mother, the developing fetus, and the breastfed infant [1]. Severe or moderate iodine deficiency during pregnancy and lactation can affect the mother’s and newborn’s thyroid function, as well as the child’s later neuropsychological development [1]. According to the 2014 position statement of the Spanish Society of Endocrinology and Nutrition [2], several studies have shown that most Spanish mothers are iodine-deficient during pregnancy and lactation. The foods that had the greatest impact on urinary iodine in these studies were iodized salt, milk, and iodine supplements
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