Park Ridge, Ill. (January 30, 2014) - Recent research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition ( AJCN ) found that during pregnancy, and particularly during the third trimester, large amounts of choline may be needed to support fetal development. Conclusions of the research revealed that current recommendations may be too low. 1 Choline deficiency in pregnant women may result in elevated levels of homocysteine, potentially resulting in birth defects.
January is National Birth Defects Prevention Month, and according to the National Birth Defects Prevention Network (NBDPN), every 4½ minutes a baby is born with a birth defect such as spina bifida. 2 This study adds to the growing body of evidence demonstrating that adequate maternal choline intake is vital to a healthy pregnancy.
Choline Needed for Healthy Fetal Growth
"The methodology we employed in this study helped us clearly see changes in choline metabolism during pregnancy," says Dr. Marie Caudill, professor in the Division of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University and lead investigator of this study. "The results are very meaningful because they demonstrate the substantial demand for choline during pregnancy and may call for an increase in the amount of choline recommended in the diets of expecting mothers."
Additional Benefits of Choline
Eggs Are a Simple Way to Add Choline to the Diet
For more information on the health benefits of eggs, materials on the nutritional importance of choline or recipes, visit EggNutritionCenter.org , CholineInfo.org and IncredibleEgg.org .
About the American Egg Board (AEB)
About the Egg Nutrition Center (ENC)
References:
1. Yan Y, Jiang X, West AA, Perry CA, Malysheva OV, Brenna JT, Stabler SP, Allen RH, Gregory JF, Caudill MA. Pregnancy alters choline dynamics: results of a randomized trial using stable isotope methodology in pregnant and nonpregnant women. Am J Clin Nutr . 2013;98:1459-67.
2. National birth defects prevention month. National Birth Defects Prevention Network Web site. http://www.nbdpn.org/national_birth_defects_prevent.php . Updated 2014. Accessed Jan 14, 2014.
3. Zeisel SH. Choline: Needed for normal development of memory. JACN 2000;19(5):528S-531S.
4. Shaw GM, et al. Periconceptional dietary intake of choline and betaine and neural tube defects in offspring. Am J Epidemiol 2004;160:102-9.
5. Jensen HH, et al. Choline in the diets of the US population: NHANES, 2003-2004. The FASEB Journal . 2007; 21:lb219.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition