Threapleton, DE orcid.org/0000-0002-5884-3372, Snart, CJP, Keeble, C orcid.org/0000-0003-1633-8842 et al. (18 more authors) (2021) Maternal iodine status in a multi-ethnic UK birth cohort: Associations with child cognitive and educational development. Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology, 35 (2). pp. 236-246. ISSN 0269-5022
Abstract
Background
Maternal iodine requirements increase during pregnancy to supply thyroid hormones critical for fetal neurodevelopment. Iodine insufficiency may result in poorer cognitive or child educational outcomes but current evidence is sparse and inconsistent.
Objectives
To quantify the association between maternal iodine status and child educational outcomes.
Methods
Urinary iodine concentrations (UIC) and iodine/creatinine ratios (I:Cr) were measured in 6971 mothers at 26-28 weeks' gestation participating in the Born in Bradford cohort. Maternal iodine status was examined in relation to child school achievement (early years foundation stage (EYFS), phonics, and Key Stage 1 (KS1)), other learning outcomes, social and behavioural difficulties, and sensorimotor control in 5745 children aged 4-7 years.
Results
Median (interquartile range) UIC was 76 µg/L (46, 120), and I:Cr was 83 µg/g (59, 121). Overall, there was no strong or consistent evidence to support associations between UIC or I:Cr and neurodevelopmental outcomes. For instance, predicted EYFS and phonics scores (primary outcomes) at the 25th vs 75th I:Cr percentiles (99% confidence intervals) were similar, with no evidence of associations: EYFS scores were 32 (99% CI 31, 33) and 33 (99% CI 32, 34), and phonics scores were 34 (99% CI 33, 35) and 35 (99% CI 34, 36), respectively.
Conclusions
In the largest single study of its kind, there was little evidence of detrimental neurodevelopmental outcomes in children born to pregnant women with iodine insufficiency as defined by World Health Organization–outlined thresholds. Alternative functional biomarkers for iodine status in pregnancy and focused assessment of other health outcomes may provide additional insight.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2020 The Authors. Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | Born in Bradford; child development; cognition; deficiency; iodine; nutrition; pregnancy |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > School of Food Science and Nutrition (Leeds) > FSN Nutrition and Public Health (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Medicine (Leeds) > Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine (LICAMM) > Clinical & Population Science Dept (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Medicine and Health (Leeds) > School of Psychology (Leeds) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number Department of Health Accounts Payable - SULEEDSUNI PR-R10-0514-11004 MRC (Medical Research Council) Not Known NIHR National Inst Health Research R&D ARC M20086 MRC (Medical Research Council) UKPRP M20072 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 18 Sep 2020 13:17 |
Last Modified: | 25 Jun 2023 22:23 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Wiley |
Identification Number: | 10.1111/ppe.12719 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:164441 |