Vitamin D during pregnancy and the neurodevelopment of the child: systematic review

Background: A deficiency of vitamin D during pregnancy has a negative impact on maternal-infant health. Objective: To evaluate the effect of vitamin D status during pregnancy on offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes. Selection of studies: We explored studies that linked maternal vitamin D status with offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes. The studies selected were identified by systematically reviewing the scientific literature published in PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus and Cochrane until January 2018. The quality of the studies was evaluated using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. Results: 164 studies were identified and reviewed for selection. This systematic review, which comprises eleven studies (ten of a high methodological quality and one moderate), shows that mothers with vitamin D levels <50 nmol/L during pregnancy had offspring with poorer mental, motor and language development compared to mothers with concentrations >= 50 nmol/L. Conclusion: There is still not enough scientific evidence to confirm the relationship between prenatal vitamin D deficiency and offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes. However, recent data suggest a detrimental effect on the mental, motor and language development of offspring.