The key facts

  • In 43% of pregnant women in late pregnancy, vitamin A levels were insufficient, with pronounced deficiency in only 1.9% in the third trimester
  • A decrease in retinol of 0.2 µmol/L was linked to a newborn weight gain of 31–68 g
  • In 17.3% of children, the weight was 4 kg or more — in Norway, such a weight is considered high

What the researchers found

Norwegian scientists studied data from 723 women with uncomplicated pregnancies and concluded that a low level of vitamin A in the mother may be associated with a higher birth weight of the baby. The study was published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition, Gazeta.Ru reports on it.

How the study was conducted

The participants had their blood levels of retinol — one of the forms of vitamin A — measured in the second and third trimesters, and the results were then compared with the newborns' weight. In late pregnancy, 43% of the women had insufficient vitamin A levels, but pronounced deficiency was extremely rare: in the second trimester — in none of the participants, and in the third — in only 1.9%.

The link with the baby's weight and its limitations

According to the analysis, a decrease in retinol concentration of 0.2 µmol/L was associated with an increase in the baby's birth weight of 31–68 g. In 17.3% of newborns, the body weight was 4 kg or more — in Norway, such a weight is considered high. “We found a clear association between a low level of vitamin A in the mother and a high birth weight of the baby,” said Astrid Kamilla Stunes, a researcher at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

Caution about the conclusions

The scientists emphasized that the study does not prove a cause-and-effect relationship. In addition, a low level of vitamin A by itself does not mean a clinical deficiency: the retinol level in the blood does not necessarily reflect the body's total vitamin stores. The authors also noted that vitamin A is necessary for normal fetal development, but an excess of it can be dangerous and increase the risk of birth defects; it can be obtained from fish, eggs, dairy products, carrots, and other vegetables.