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Low selenium linked to pregnancy complication
Last Updated: 2003-12-16 14:32:49 -0400 (Reuters Health)
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Some pregnant women are prone to develop a
condition called pre-eclampsia - high blood pressure, kidney impairment
and reduced blood flow to the placenta that can complicate the pregnancy. The
cause is not clear, but now European researchers have found that women
with low levels of the mineral selenium are four times more likely to have
pre-eclampsia than women with higher levels.
It's thought that one cause of pre-eclampsia is oxidants that arise from a
poorly functioning placenta. Since selenium is an antioxidant, low levels
of this trace element could potentially increase the risk of pre-eclampsia.
To investigate, Dr. Margaret P. Rayman, from the University of Surrey in
Guildford, UK, and colleagues measured levels of selenium in toenail
clippings from 53 pre-eclamptic patients and in 53 matched pregnant women.
Selenium accumulates in nails, which therefore provide a good record of
levels over time.
As reported in the November issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics
and Gynecology, average selenium levels were significantly lower in the
patient group than in controls.
Moreover, among the pre-eclamptic women, the lower the selenium level the
more likely a woman was to deliver prematurely.
"Given the serious nature of preeclampsia and the potentially adverse
consequences of premature delivery and the associated low birth weight,
our results may have important public health implications," the researchers
conclude.
They note that selenium intake has dropped both in the UK and in a number
of other European countries over the last 20 to 25 years.
Just a small increase in selenium levels could confer dramatic benefits,
Rayman's team says, adding that they plan to conduct a randomized trial of
selenium supplementation during pregnancy.
SOURCE: American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, November 2003
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