Association between maternal vitamin D status in pregnancy and neurodevelopmental outcomes in childhood: results from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)

Abstract

Seafood intake in pregnancy has been positively associated with childhood cognitive outcomes which could potentially relate to the high vitamin D content of oily fish. However, whether higher maternal vitamin D status (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D)) in pregnancy is associated with a reduced risk of offspring suboptimal neurodevelopmental outcomes is unclear. A total of 7065 mother-child pairs were studied from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children cohort who had data for both serum total 25(OH)D concentration in pregnancy and at least one measure of offspring neurodevelopment (pre-school development at 6-42 months; 'Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire' scores at 7 years; intelligence quotient (IQ) at 8 years; reading ability at 9 years). After adjustment for confounders, children of vitamin D-deficient mothers (<50·0 nmol/l) were more likely to have scores in the lowest quartile for gross-motor development at 30 months (OR 1·20; 95 % CI 1·03, 1·40), fine-motor development at 30 months (OR 1·23; 95 % CI 1·05, 1·44) and social development at 42 months (OR 1·20; 95 % CI 1·01, 1·41) than vitamin D-sufficient mothers (≥50·0 nmol/l). No associations were found with neurodevelopmental outcomes, including IQ, measured at older ages. However, our results suggest that deficient maternal vitamin D status in pregnancy may have adverse effects on some measures of motor and social development in children under 4 years. Prevention of vitamin D deficiency may be important for preventing suboptimal development in the first 4 years of life.

Seasonal variation in fetal lateral cerebral ventricular diameter

“…Therefore, any peak in November in mean fetal lateral cerebral ventricle size is likely to relate to an exposure occurring in the preceding summer and/or autumn. Maternal vitamin D status is at its highest during summer and autumn in the United Kingdom: our data do not therefore support a protective role for higher 25(OH)D levels against fetal lateral cerebral ventriculomegaly. Alternative explanations for our findings should therefore be considered.…”

“…The mechanisms by which this effect is mediated are uncertain, but studies in rats show that developmental vitamin D deficiency is associated with impaired cellular differentiation across a number of brain regions and altered brain expression of genes involved in cytoskeleton maintenance and neurotransmission . Circulating concentrations of 25‐hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D, the measure of vitamin D status) exhibit seasonality among pregnant women in the United Kingdom, with peak levels in early autumn and trough levels in spring reflecting variation in exposure to ultraviolet B radiation in sunshine which stimulates cutaneous vitamin D synthesis . We reasoned that, if vitamin D status does influence neurodevelopment, this might be reflected by seasonal variation in lateral cerebral ventricular diameter.…”

“…2 Circulating concentrations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D, the measure of vitamin D status) exhibit seasonality among pregnant women in the United Kingdom, with peak levels in early autumn and trough levels in spring reflecting variation in exposure to ultraviolet B radiation in sunshine which stimulates cutaneous vitamin D synthesis. 3 We reasoned that, if vitamin D status does influence neurodevelopment, this might be reflected by seasonal variation in lateral cerebral ventricular diameter. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a cross-sectional study utilizing data from routine fetal ultra-sound scans performed at a tertiary referral center in London, UK, over a 12-year period.…”

Maternal and Foetal Health Implications of Vitamin D Status during Pregnancy

“…Seven studies did not find any association between prenatal vitamin D levels and global IQ or cognitive development at preschool [69][70][71][72] and school age [73,74]. However, Keim et al [75] reported a positive association between both maternal and cord blood 25(OH)D concentration and IQ at age 7, but the effect estimates were very small.…”

“…Two studies reported increased psychomotor scores at age 14 months [51] and at 30 months [74] associated with higher maternal vitamin D concentrations in pregnancy. However, 4 studies did not find any association [69,71,72,75].…”