title: Relationship between body-mass index and serum folate concentrations in pregnant women.
abstract: The concentration of micronutrients impacts fetal development and pregnancy outcome and has been suggested to be negatively correlated with the body-mass index (BMI). We evaluated the relationship between BMI and the serum folate concentration in 802 and 660 Korean pregnant women in mid- and late pregnancy, respectively, who participated in a multicenter prospective study. There was a significant negative correlation between BMI value and the serum folate concentration at mid- and late pregnancy (P for trend 0.001 and 0.024, respectively). A general linear model confirmed this correlation at both time points after adjusting for gestational age and total folate intake. These findings are important as the serum folate concentration is a rate-limiting factor for placental folate transport to the fetus, and an inadequate folate supply may cause various malformations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutritional Science and Food Management, Ewha Womans University, Seodaemun-ku, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: J-Y
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: K-N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: E-H
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Ha
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ha
authors.forename: K-Y
authors.initials: KY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Y-C
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tamura
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005260:Female; D047109:Fetal Development / Q000502:physiology*; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000097:blood*; D005494:Folic Acid Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D008431:Maternal-Fetal Exchange; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D010920:Placenta; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000097:blood*; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D056910:Republic of Korea; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D005492:Folic Acid