High Dose Vit D3 Supplementation During Pregnancy – Better Childhood Memory at 10 Yrs of Age

VitD3 is a fat soluble, sun-shine vitamin and is required for many body functions.

Vit D3 Supplementation in Pregnancy

A new study has found that high-dose vitamin D3 supplementation during pregnancy is positively associated with visual and verbal memory, as well as flexibility among children by the age of 10.

The authors say the findings strengthen evidence of prenatal vitamin D exposure with childhood cognition.

The study has sparked reactions among experts, claiming it to be a well-conducted trial with detailed follow-up testing, but some cautioned about its interpretation due to the modest differences observed.

The study has been published in Jama Network Open and included 623 Danish mother-child pairs.

Study Design

The follow-up neurocognitive testing was completed by 498 children.It divided the 623 pregnant women from week 24 to one week postpartum into consuming only the recommended dose of 400 IU vitamin D3, or the daily recommended dose plus an additional 2,400 IU of vitamin D3.

The follow-up neurocognitive testing was completed by 498 children at an average age of 10.3 years. They tested 11 specific cognitive functions across areas: intelligence, processing speed, reaction time, attention, motor function, memory, working memory, and executive functions.

Cognitive testing

The research team found that after adjusting for factors such as sex, age, and season of birth, the children from mothers who received the high dose of vitamin D3 when pregnant had better visual and verbal memory.

The same children also showed a positive association with flexibility or set shift — switching attention, thoughts, or behaviors when faced with new tasks or changes. However, it did not show an impact on the remaining areas.

Larger Applications of This Study

This is a remarkable study from the perspective that a large number of mother-child pairs were recurited in this study and almost 500 pairs completed the study. Second very remarkable aspect is the follow up period of little over 10 years, post partum to demonstrate the “atill existing” benefits.

For new, wannabe parents, Vit D3 supplementation has more value and benefits even if modest, and these benefits are long lasting at marginal incremental cost of supplementation of Vit D3, at least from Indian perspective where a 60,000 IU Vit D3 supplement is available at under Rs 50 per pack. For resource constraint countries, Vit D3 supplementation may just well be the cognitive boost for their progenies.