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Reception of choline during pregnancy will protect the child and mother from stresses
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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It is impossible to overestimate the benefits of folic acid for pregnant women, because folate metabolites are involved in the synthesis of DNA.
A person does not synthesize this water-soluble vitamin, which refers to the vitamins of group B. Folic acid can be obtained with food. It is found in products such as bread from wholemeal flour, in green vegetables with leaves, in legumes, baking and honey.
Pregnant women are advised to take folic acid approximately a month before conception and during pregnancy in the early stages.
However, scientists say that there is another nutritional element, which also deserves a place in the list of recommendations of obstetrician-gynecologists - choline.
This vitamin is conventionally referred to as a complex of B vitamins. It is found in meat and eggs, so if a man decides to please his pregnant wife with breakfast, he may not think twice about a delicious dish, but simply feed it with an appetizing scrambled eggs and bacon - and tasty, and in the same time is useful.
Choline regulates the growth of cells and their development. Taking choline during pregnancy will help the child avoid problems with mental health problems and reduce the risk of chronic illness in the future.
A study recently conducted by staff at Cornell University showed that taking choline can protect a child from developing diabetes and hypertension.
In the course of the studies, which were conducted under the guidance of the assistant professor of nutrition sciences Marie Codill, women in the third month of pregnancy took 930 milligrams of choline - twice the recommended daily allowance.
As a result, in newborn children the concentration of the hormone cortisol (the so-called stress hormone) in the blood was reduced by 33% compared to the control group of the born children, whose mothers consumed choline in the amount of 400 milligrams a day.
According to scientists, choline will help women overcome postpartum depression, and also positively affects metabolic, behavioral and neuroendocrine development.
Sources of choline in food - milk, egg yolks, chicken, pork, beef, legumes. This substance is also found in vitamin complexes for pregnant women.
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