LB2882MaternalNutriti+ - Mead Johnson Nutrition

Preterm birth
Preterm birth—live birth before thirty-seven completed weeks of gestation—is a daunting obstetrical problem. An
estimated 15 million babies are born preterm worldwide every year. 146 Preterm babies are at greater risk of death
and disability, including cerebral palsy, sensory impairments, intellectual disabilities, and vision and hearing loss. 147
Most preterm births occur between 32 and 36 weeks of gestation. Babies born before 34 weeks of pregnancy
generally experience more health consequences that affect their ability to properly grow and develop, such as
respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), and anemia, than do those born further along in
gestation. 148
The cause of preterm birth is unidentifi able in many cases but it is more common in women with a past history of
preterm birth, multiparity, abnormalities of the cervix or uterus, and autoimmune diseases. 148 Maternal diabetes,
hypertension, pre-eclampsia, gestational alcohol consumption, maternal stress and anxiety, smoking cigarettes
during pregnancy, 148 pre-pregnancy underweight, and gaining an inadequate amount of weight during pregnancy 149
are also associated with preterm birth risk.
Some nutrient defi ciencies, such as folate and vitamin A defi ciencies, have been linked to preterm birth. 65,82,89 Several
studies have investigated the relationship between maternal n-3 LCPUFA intake and duration of gestation and some
suggest that consuming n-3 LCPUFA slightly increases duration of gestation (within the normal range). 72 In 2010,
Makrides and colleagues reported the results of the large randomized DOMINO (DHA to Optimize Mother Infant
Outcomes) trial with 2399 women. In this study, the group of women who received 800 mg DHA per day during
pregnancy had signifi cantly fewer very preterm births (