Nutrients. 2018 Jul 30;10(8). pii: E1000. doi: 10.3390/nu10081000.

Relationships between Maternal Obesity and Maternal and Neonatal Iron Status.

Flynn AC1, Begum S2, White SL3, Dalrymple K4, Gill C5, Alwan NA6,7, Kiely M8,9, Latunde-Dada G10, Bell R11, Briley AL12, Nelson SM13, Oteng-Ntim E14, Sandall J15, Sanders TA16, Whitworth M17, Murray DM18,19, Kenny LC20,21, Poston L22; SCOPE and UBPEAT Consortiums1.

Abstract

Obesity in pregnancy may negatively influence maternal and infant iron status. The aim of this study was to examine the association of obesity with inflammatory and iron status in both mother and infant in two prospective studies in pregnancy: UPBEAT and SCOPE. Maternal blood samples from obese (n = 245, BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²) and normal weight (n = 245, BMI < 25 kg/m²) age matched pregnant women collected at approximately 15 weeks’ gestation, and umbilical cord blood samples collected at delivery, were analysed for a range of inflammatory and iron status biomarkers. Concentrations of C- reactive protein and Interleukin-6 in obese women compared to normal weight women were indicative of an inflammatory response. Soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) concentration [18.37 nmol/L (SD 5.65) vs 13.15 nmol/L (SD 2.33)] and the ratio of sTfR and serum ferritin [1.03 (SD 0.56) vs 0.69 (SD 0.23)] were significantly higher in obese women compared to normal weight women (P < 0.001). Women from ethnic minority groups (n = 64) had higher sTfR concentration compared with white women. There was no difference in maternal hepcidin between obese and normal weight women. Iron status determined by cord ferritin was not statistically different in neonates born to obese women compared with neonates born to normal weight women when adjusted for potential confounding variables. Obesity is negatively associated with markers of maternal iron status, with ethnic minority women having poorer iron statuses than white women.

KEYWORDS: inflammation; iron status; obesity; pregnancy

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