Lack of Vitamin C in Pregnant Mothers Affects Fetus Brain

A new study highlights the importance of Vitamin C in pregnant women. Researchers say that deficiency of vitamin C in pregnant mothers has serious consequences on the fetus' brain. This study was presented by the researchers at the University of Copenhagen. What is alarming is that the damage to the fetal brain is irreversible. Including Vitamin C supplements after birth do not make up for the damage.

A population study by the scientists showed that 10-20 percent of all adults in the developed world suffer from deficiency of Vitamin C.

"Even marginal vitamin C deficiency in the mother stunts the fetal hippocampus, the important memory centre, by 10-15 per cent, preventing the brain from optimal development," says Professor Jens Lykkesfeldt. He heads the group of scientists that reached this conclusion by studying pregnant guinea pigs and their pups. Just like humans, guinea pigs cannot produce vitamin C themselves, which is why they were chosen as the model.

"We used to think that the mother could protect the baby. Ordinarily there is a selective transport from mother to fetus of the substances the baby needs during pregnancy. However, it now appears that the transport is not sufficient in the case of vitamin C deficiency. Therefore, it is extremely important to draw attention to this problem, which potentially can have serious consequences for the children affected," says Jens Lykkesfeldt.

The results emphasise the importance of a mother's lifestyle and nutritional status during pregnancy. When the vitamin C deficient guinea pig pups were born, scientists divided them into two groups and gave one group vitamin C supplements. They noticed that when the pups were old, which corresponds to teen age in humans, there was no improvement in the group that had been given supplements. 

The team is now determining how early in pregnancey vitamin C deficiency influences the development of fetal guinea pigs. 

There are some groups that may be particularly vulnerable to vitamin C deficiency: "People with low economic status who eat poorly -- and perhaps also smoke -- often suffer from vitamin C deficiency. Comparatively speaking, their children risk being born with a poorly developed memory potential. These children may encounter learning problems, and seen in a societal context, history repeats itself because these children find it more difficult to escape the environment into which they are born," says Jens Lykkesfeldt. He emphasises that if pregnant women eat a varied diet, do not smoke, and for instance take a multi-vitamin tablet daily during pregnancy, there is no reason to fear vitamin C deficiency. "Because it takes so little to avoid vitamin C deficiency, it is my hope that both politicians and the authorities become aware that this can be a potential problem," concludes Jens Lykkesfeldt.

The study was published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE.