Association between vitamin D status during pregnancy and total gestational weight gain and postpartum weight retention: a prospective cohort

Objectives To evaluate the association between vitamin D status during pregnancy and total gestational weight gain (GWG), GWG rates and postpartum weight retention. Methods Prospective cohort of 163 women from Rio de Janeiro was followed at 5(th)-13(th) (baseline), 20(th)-26(th), 30(th)-36(th) gestational weeks and at 30-62 days postpartum. Plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] was evaluated during each trimester and was categorized as adequate (>= 50 nmol/L) or inadequate (<50 nmol/L). GWG (kg) was calculated as the difference between the weight measured at baseline and 36(th)-42(th) gestational weeks. GWG rates (kg/week) were calculated between each visit. Postpartum weight retention (kg) was analysed as the difference between weights measured at 30-62 days postpartum and 5(th)-13(th) gestational weeks. Statistical analyses were performed using linear regression models that included interaction terms between vitamin D status and first trimester body mass index (BMI) (<25/>= 25 kg/m(2)). Confounders were selected based on a directed acyclic graph. Results The prevalence of vitamin D inadequacy was 16.6%, 9.9% and 10.6% in the first, second and third trimesters, respectively. Overweight women with vitamin D inadequacy in the first (beta = 3.70; 95% CI 0.09; 7.31, p-value = 0.045) and third trimester (beta = 4.59, 95% CI 0.07; 9.10, p-value = 0.047) presented higher increases in total GWG than did women with vitamin D adequacy. This association was also observed between first trimester vitamin D status and GWG rates between visits 1 and 2 (beta = 0.17; 95% CI 0.13; 0.36, p-value = 0.07). Conclusions There was an interaction effect of first trimester BMI (>= 25 kg/m(2)) on the association between first and third trimester vitamin D status and GWG.