Preterm Birth: A Narrative Review of the Current Evidence on Nutritional and Bioactive Solutions for Risk Reduction.
Nutrients. 2019 Aug 6;11(8). pii: E1811. doi: 10.3390/nu11081811.
Samuel TM1, Sakwinska O1, Makinen K1, Burdge GC2, Godfrey KM3, Silva-Zolezzi I4.
Items in both categories Pregnancy and Omega-3 are listed here:
- Seafood (Omega-3) during pregnancy increased childhood IQ by 8 points – review Dec 2019
- Pregnant women in Australia to take Omega-3 when told of reduction in preterm births – Dec 2019
- Fat-soluble vitamins critical for conception, pregnancy and breast feeding (pigs) – Sept 2019
- Preterm Births reduced by Omega-3, Zinc, and Vitamin D – Aug 2019
- Depression after childbirth 5 X less likely if good Omega-3 index – April 2019
- Infant Problem-Solving Skills Linked to Mother’s DHA Omega-3 Level During Pregnancy – April 2019
- Omega-3 during pregnancy and breastfeeding is recommended – May 2019
- Preterm Births decreased by Omega-3 (analysis of 184 countries) – April 2019
- Preterm Births - promising preventions – anti-oxidants, Vitamin D, Omega-3, Zinc, etc. – Jan 2019
- Omega-3 index of 5 greatly decreases the risk of an early preterm birth – Dec 2018
- Omega-3 added during pregnancy helps in many ways – Cochrane Review of RCTs Nov 2018
- Omega-3 helps preconception (in addition to pregnancy) – many studies
- More pregnancies and fewer abortions when Omega-3 was added (cows in this case) July 2018
- PCOS treated by a combination of Vitamin D and Omega-3 – RCT Oct 2018
- Omega-3 – fewer than 5 percent of adult women get the RDA – April 2018
- Omega-3, Vitamin D, Folic acid etc. during pregnancy and subsequent mental illness of child – March 2018
- Supplementation while pregnant and psychotic – 20 percent Omega-3, 6 percent Vitamin D – June 2016
- Importance of Vitamin D and fish rarely mentioned during midwife-led prenatal booking visits – July 2017
- Pre-term birth rate of pregnant smokers cut in half if take Omega-3 – RCT May 2017
- Gestational diabetes treated by Vitamin D plus Omega-3 – RCT Feb 2017
- Asthma reduced 31 percent when Omega-3 taken during pregnancy – RCT Dec 2016
- Preterm births strongly related to Vitamin D, Vitamin D Receptor, Iodine, Omega-3, etc
- Typical pregnancy is now 39 weeks – Omega-3 and Vitamin D might restore it to full 40 weeks
- Omega-3 supplementation during pregnancy reduce early pre-term births (save 1500 USD per child) – Aug 2016
- Rancid Omega-3 increased the odds of newborn mortality by 13 times (rats) – July 2016
- Preterm birth extended by 2 weeks with Omega-3 – Meta-analysis Nov 2015
- Stillbirth rate typically 1 in 200, perhaps only 1 in 800 with Omega-3
- Omega-3 helps pregnancy in many ways: preterm 26 percent less likely etc – review July 2012
- Pregnancy and infants healthier with Omega-3 supplementation
- Vitamin D, DHA, Folic, Iodine benefits during pregnancy – July 2012
Items in both categories Pregnancy and Zinc are listed here:
- Preterm Births reduced by Omega-3, Zinc, and Vitamin D – Aug 2019
- Preterm Births - promising preventions – anti-oxidants, Vitamin D, Omega-3, Zinc, etc. – Jan 2019
- Autism associated with low Zinc during pregnancy (Zinc is needed by Vitamin D Receptor) – July 2018
- Birth problems associated with low Zinc
- Micronutrients (such as Vitamin D) needed during pregnancy – May 2016
- Zinc helps pregnancies – 14 percent fewer preterm births, etc. – Cochrane RCT Feb 2015
- Infant wheezing 40 percent less likely if mother supplemented with vitamin D, vitamin E, or Zinc – meta-analysis Aug 2015
Vitamin D and preterm birth
- Preterm birth rate reduced by 43 percent with adequate Vitamin D supplementation – meta-analysis Feb 2017
- Preterm birth 3X more likely if low vitamin D – Oct 2018
- Preterm birth interventions – 4 studies found possible vitamin D benefit – Cochrane – Nov 2018
- Prenatal VITAMIN D is more important than other prenatal vitamins
- Vitamin D is being used to prevent premature births – Baggerly interview – Dec 2015
- Preterm birth rate reduced 57 percent by Vitamin D – Nov 2015
Preterm births are VERY costly – Feb 2017 contains this cost-analysis
Assumptions: additional $50,000 per premature birth, $100 for education & supplements per pregnancy
Net savings per birth After subtract all costs | # needed to eliminate 1 preterm | Cost of educ, supp per pregnancy | Total cost Educ/supp. | Cost of test per pregnancy | Total test costs | Net savings after subtract costs | |
Vitamin D (5,000 IU avg) | $4,300 | 20 | $100 | $2,000 | $200%%%(2 tests) | $4,000 | $43,000 |
Omega-3 | $646 | 67 | $100 | $6,700 | $0 | $0 | $43,300 |
Vitamin C reduces early rupture | $646 | 67 | $100 | $6,700 | $0 | $0 | $43,300 |
Iodine | $320 | 100 | $100 | $10,000 | $80 | $8,000 | $32,000 |
Does not include additional savings to infant beyond the first year
such as reductions in Autism, MS, Respiratory Tract Infection, Asthma, Allergies
Does not include additional savings to mother
such as reduction in preeclampsia, miscarriage, gestational diabetes, depression
nor does it assign any costs for anguish of possible premie death, stillbirth, time off from work, job productivity
Vitamin D helps more than preterm birth
- Pregnancies helped by Vitamin D in many ways – 27th meta-analysis Jan 2019
- Healthy pregnancies need lots of vitamin D has the following summary
Problem | Reduces | Evidence | |||||
0. Chance of not conceiving | 3.4 times | Observe | |||||
1. Miscarriage | 2.5 times | Observe | |||||
2. Pre-eclampsia | 3.6 times | RCT | |||||
3. Gestational Diabetes | 3 times | RCT | |||||
4. Good 2nd trimester sleep quality | 3.5 times | Observe | |||||
5. Premature birth | 2 times | RCT | |||||
6. C-section - unplanned | 1.6 times | Observe | |||||
Stillbirth - OMEGA-3 | 4 times | RCT - Omega-3 | |||||
7. Depression AFTER pregnancy | 1.4 times | RCT | |||||
8. Small for Gestational Age | 1.6 times | meta-analysis | |||||
9. Infant height, weight, head size within normal limits | RCT | ||||||
10. Childhood Wheezing | 1.3 times | RCT | |||||
11. Additional child is Autistic | 4 times | Intervention | |||||
12.Young adult Multiple Sclerosis | 1.9 times | Observe | |||||
13. Preeclampsia in young adult | 3.5 times | RCT | |||||
14. Good motor skills @ age 3 | 1.4 times | Observe | |||||
15. Childhood Mite allergy | 5 times | RCT | |||||
16. Childhood Respiratory Tract visits | 2.5 times | RCT |
RCT = Randomized Controlled Trial
 Download the PDF from Vitamin D Life
Preterm birth (PTB) (<37 weeks of gestation) is the leading cause of newborn death and a risk factor for short and long-term adverse health outcomes. Most cases are of unknown cause. Although the mechanisms triggering PTB remain unclear, an inappropriate increase in net inflammatory load seems to be key. To date, interventions that reduce the risk of PTB are effective only in specific groups of women, probably due to the heterogeneity of its etiopathogenesis. Use of progesterone is the most effective, but only in singleton pregnancies with history of PTB. Thus, primary prevention is greatly needed and nutritional and bioactive solutions are a promising alternative. Among these, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is the most promising to reduce the risk for early PTB. Other potential nutrient interventions include the administration of zinc (possibly limited to populations with low nutritional status or poor zinc status) and vitamin D; additional preliminary evidence exists for vitamin A, calcium, iron, folic acid, combined iron-folate, magnesium, multiple micronutrients, and probiotics. Considering the public health relevance of PTB, promising interventions should be studied in large and well-designed clinical trials. The objective of this review is to describe, summarize, and discuss the existing evidence on nutritional and bioactive solutions for reducing the risk of PTB.