Association of Iron Status and Intake During Pregnancy with Neuropsychological Outcomes in Children Aged 7 Years: The Prospective Birth Cohort Infancia y Medio Ambiente (INMA) Study

Abstract

Early iron status plays an important role in prenatal neurodevelopment. Iron deficiency and high iron status have been related to alterations in child cognitive development; however, there are no data about iron intake during pregnancy with other environmental factors in relation to long term cognitive functioning of children. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between maternal iron status and iron intake during pregnancy and child neuropsychological outcomes at 7 years of age. We used data from the INMA Cohort population-based study. Iron status during pregnancy was assessed according to serum ferritin levels, and iron intake was assessed with food frequency questionnaires. Working memory, attention, and executive function were assessed in children at 7 years old with the N-Back task, Attention Network Task, and the Trail Making Test, respectively. The results show that, after controlling for potential confounders, normal maternal serum ferritin levels (from 12 mg/L to 60 mg/L) and iron intake (from 14.5 mg/day to 30.0 mg/day), respectively, were related to better scores in working memory and executive functioning in offspring. Since these functions have been associated with better academic performance and adaptation to the environment, maintaining a good state of maternal iron from the beginning of pregnancy could be a valuable strategy for the community.

Maternal Ferritin Levels during Pregnancy and ADHD Symptoms in 4-Year-Old Children: Results from the INMA–INfancia y Medio Ambiente (Environment and Childhood) Prospective Birth Cohort Study

“…Animal models show that early iron deficiency may lead to structural and functional brain abnormalities including alterations in dopamine metabolism, energy metabolism and myelination [ 14 ]. Several case-control studies have reported a significant association between iron deficiency and low scores in tests assessing mental, social and motor development in infants, as well as a lower intelligence quotient [ 15 ], poor learning performance and impaired neuropsychological functions (e.g., poor spatial memory) [ 13 ].…”

Maternal Iron Status in Pregnancy and Child Health Outcomes after Birth: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Of these, 142 papers were fully read and led to the identification of 41 studies meeting the inclusion criteria. Scanning reference lists led to the inclusion of three more studies, resulting in a total of 44 studies [ 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 ] ( Figure 1 ).…”

Prenatal Manganese Exposure and Long-Term Neuropsychological Development at 4 Years of Age in a Population-Based Birth Cohort

“…Information on maternal variables were: education level (up to primary, secondary, university), body mass index (BMI, kg/m 2 ) before pregnancy (low weight [<18.5], healthy [18.5-< 25], overweight [25-< 30], obese [≥30]) age at conception (years), parity (0/≥1,), alcohol and smoking consumption during pregnancy (yes/no), and maternal ferritin levels analyzed in the first trimester of pregnancy [(mean (SD) 13.3 (1.5)] by fluoroimmunoassay [42]. Maternal exposure to PM 2.5 throughout pregnancy and in each trimester was also assessed [43].…”