Vitamin D replacement in pregnant women in rural north India: a pilot study

• Published in: European journal of clinical nutrition Vol. 63; no. 9; pp. 1157 - 1159
• Main Authors: Sahu, M, Das, V, Aggarwal, A, Rawat, V, Saxena, P, Bhatia, V
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01-09-2009; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 25-Hydroxyvitamin D; Asian people; Biological and medical sciences; Calciferol; Care and treatment; Cholecalciferol - administration & dosage; Clinical Nutrition; Dietary Supplements; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Epidemiology; Feeding. Feeding behavior; Female; Food and nutrition; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Health aspects; Humans; India; Internal Medicine; Medical sciences; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Metabolic Diseases; Nutrition research; Pilot Projects; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications - blood; Pregnancy Complications - drug therapy; Pregnant women; Prenatal Care; Public Health; Rural areas; Rural Health; short-communication; Supplements; Vertebrates: anatomy and physiology, studies on body, several organs or systems; Vitamin D; Vitamin D - analogs & derivatives; Vitamin D - blood; Vitamin D deficiency; Vitamin D Deficiency - blood; Vitamin D Deficiency - drug therapy; Vitamin D3; Vitamin deficiency; Asia; India; cholecalciferol; Indians; 25-hydroxyvitamin D; pregnancy; Human; Rural environment; Steroid hormone; Metabolic diseases; Pregnancy; Vitamin D; Cholecalciferol(25-hydroxy); Female; Indian; Woman; Colecalciferol
• ISSN: 0954-3007; 1476-5640
• DOI: 10.1038/ejcn.2009.27

Hypovitaminosis D is common in both urban and rural Indians. The dose of vitamin D needed for the treatment of its deficiency during pregnancy is not clear. We conducted a study in rural Indians to evaluate the effect of cholecalciferol supplementation during routine antenatal visits on maternal 25 hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) at delivery. Pregnant women received either no cholecalciferol (Group A) or 60 000 U (Group B) in the fifth month of gestation or 120 000 U each in the fifth and seventh gestational months (Group C). Serum 25OHD was measured at baseline (
n
=139) and at delivery (
n
=84). Median (interquartile range) 25OHD at baseline was low: 32.3 nmol/l (22.8–50.1 nmol/l). A significant increase in 25OHD at delivery was obtained only in group C: 40.1 nmol/l (26.9–58.4 nmol/l) at baseline vs 53.4 nmol/l (41.2–88.0 nmol/l) after delivery,
P
<0.001. Only 20% of participants in Group C achieved 25OHD at delivery >80 nmol/l, not significantly different from Group B. Cholecalciferol in doses of 120 000 U each in fifth and seventh gestational months was effective in raising 25OHD at delivery.