Lifestyle, nutrient intake, iron status, and pregnancy outcome in pregnant women of advanced maternal age

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate how advanced maternal age influences lifestyle, nutrient intake, iron status, and pregnancy outcomes in pregnant women. The subjects of this study were 112 pregnant women who were receiving prenatal care at gynecologists located in Seoul. The subjects were divided into two groups according to their ages: those over age 35 were the advanced age group of pregnant women (AP) and those under age 35 were the young age group of pregnant women (YP). General factors, nutrient intakes, iron status, and pregnancy outcomes of the two groups were then compared. It was found that 72.5% of the YP group and 51.2% of the AP group had pre-pregnancy alcohol drinking experience; indicating that the YP group had more pre-pregnancy alcohol consumption than the AP group (P < 0.05). The only difference found in nutrient intake between the two groups was their niacin intakes which were 16.83 ± 8.20 mg/day and 13.76 ± 5.28 mg/day, respectively. When gestational age was shorter than 38.7 weeks, the average infant birth weight was 2.95 ± 0.08 kg, and when gestational age was longer than 40 weeks, it averaged at about 3.42 ± 0.08 kg. In other words, as gestational age increased, infant birth weight increased (P < 0.0001), and when maternal weight increased more than 15 kg, the infant birth weight increased significantly (P < 0.05). In conclusion, in order to secure healthy human resources, with respect to advanced aged women, it is necessary to intervene by promoting daily habits that consist of strategic increases in folate and calcium intake along with appropriate amounts of exercise.

Effect of Maternal Age on Pregnancy Outcome and Cesarean Delivery Rate

“…Because of this changing trend to give birth, it is a contradictory question that who is under risk [ 15 ]. Despite numerous definitions for “elderly gravida”, this term is widely used for the women who have babies after the age of 35 [ 16 ]. However, some scientists who are working on 45 and higher aged women prefer to give definition of “very advanced maternity age” to women which are above 45 of age [ 12 , 13 ].…”

Maternal and neonatal outcomes of spontaneously conceived pregnancies in mothers over 45 years: a review of the literature

“…Advancing maternal age has been shown to be associated with adverse obstetric outcomes, such as gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia, as well as adverse perinatal outcomes, such as caesarean section (CS) delivery [4,5]. Advanced maternal age was often referred to as maternal age of 35 years or older [6,7] but the term "elderly gravida" may now have little relevance-there is now growing literature that provides data on pregnancy outcomes in women aged 45 or older [8,9]. Much of this does not distinguish between spontaneous or artiWcial conception: this distinction is important because assisted reproductive techniques (ART) may themselves impact upon the outcomes of the pregnancy.…”

Pregnancy and advanced maternal age—The associations between regular exercise and maternal and newborn health variables

“…Nevertheless, the data were collected using a standardized format, and any inconsistency in reporting would have been equally distributed, regardless of maternal age. One previous study compared details of nutritional intake and serum iron values in young and advanced aged pregnant women, and found no between‐group differences …”

“…However, a search on PubMed revealed only 1 observational study of health behavior in women of advanced maternal age. It was conducted in Korea, and had a small sample size (n = 112) . Despite the suggested associations between delayed childbearing and poorer maternal (GWG, pelvic girdle pain, and urinary incontinence) and perinatal (low birthweight, macrosomia, preterm birth, and CS) outcomes, little is known about these issues in regular exercisers and in women with healthy lifestyles.…”