Iron, Vitamin D May Lead to Healthier Children

Many people have low amounts of iron in their blood. But pregnant women need
extra iron for their own health and their babies’ health. Iron is important to the
development of a baby’s brain and central nervous system. In poor countries,
however, providing all pregnant women with iron supplements can be a financial
issue. Some experts say giving supplements to babies after they are born is enough.
Someone who disagrees is Parul Christian, a nutritionist at the Johns Hopkins School
of Public Health in Maryland. She and other scientists have been doing research in
Nepal. She says their latest findings should settle any question about the value of
making sure every pregnant woman receives iron supplements. Iron is a
micronutrient. Micronutrients are important substances that are found in small
amounts in foods. The researches first completed a study among poor women in
Nepal ten years ago. During pregnancy some of the women received supplements
containing iron and another micronutrient, folic acid. Ms. Christian says that study
showed the supplements could improve child survival. Now the children are older.
The researchers returned to Nepal and tested their neurological development. They
found improved abilities among those whose mothers had received iron and folic
acid during pregnancy and for three months after. Another new study looks at levels
of vitamin D in babies. It says newborns with the lowest levels were twice as likely
to develop respiratory infections as those with normal levels of vitamin D. Vitamin D
helps build strong bones and strengthens the body’s defenses against disease. The
vitamin D is commonly added to cow’s milk and also found in supplements. Vitamin
D is called the sunshine vitamin. The body naturally produces it from sunlight.
Carols Camargo from Harvard Medical School in Massachusetts and other
researchers did the study. It followed more than nine hundred children in New
Zealand until they were five years old. Dr. Camargo said the problem of vitamin D
deficiency is not limited to countries with the least sun. There are low levels of
vitamin D in people living in areas where there is a lot of sun. This is because people
are spending more time indoors.

Alex Villarreal – VOA Special English