Prevention in the child through nutrition during pregnancy and lactation?

Maternal nutrition during pregnancy and lactation has great preventive importance for the health of the young child. Important determinants are the pregravid nutritional status of the mother, the quantity and quality of the nutrition and gestational weight gain. Diseases of the mother that have to be treated by a special diet like diabetes mellitus or maternal PKU can complicate the maternal situation. Optimal nutrition during pregnancy includes at least in the 2nd or 3rd trimester increased energy supply (+300 kcal/day) and an increase in all nutrients, including minerals and vitamins. Of special importance are omega-3-fatty acids, iron, magnesium, zinc, iodine, and folic acid, vitamin B-12 and vitamin K. Under- and overnutrition and deficiencies in the above nutrients may have an influence on the outcome of pregnancy and the health of The baby: more spontaneous abortions, prematurity, low birth weight, birth defects, intra- and extrauterine developmental disturbances and organ dysfunctions. Folic acid: Folic acid has become very important in prevention of neural tube defects (NTD). Many interventional studies showed that 70-80% of NTD can be prevented by folic acid. For the prevention of a recurrence within a family, 4 mg of folic acid per day has been recommended. For primary prevention (occurrence prevention),a daily dose of 400 mu g is proposed either by folate-rich natural nutrition or folate-enriched foods (for example, bread and cereals) or by folic acid as a prescription. Vitamines and other factors: iodine and Vitamine B-12 deficiencies in pregnancy leading to psychomotor retardation can be prevented by an optimal amount of these vitamins in the daily diet. lactation is already be prepared during pregnancy,since the mother is filling her reserves for later. During this phase the requirement for nutrients and energy is again a little higher than during pregnancy (+500 kcal/day). The composition of breast milk can be influenced by maternal nutrition and supplements for fatty acids, a few minerals (manganese, iodine, fluoride), and most vitamins. Protein: Foreign proteins in breast milk may cause an allergy in infants. This might be a reason for the mother to exclude disturbing foods from her diet. Discussion:Thus, nutrition during pregnancy and lactation has many preventive aspects. Good knowledge about this is the best basis for counseling and treatment in gynecological and pediatric services.