Women with high calcium and zinc intakes before conceiving their child may suffer less from gestational hypertension during pregnancy.
- The term “pregnancy-induced” refers to hypertension that appears during pregnancy.
- High blood pressure occurring during pregnancy can sometimes cause serious complications.
- Women who had higher calcium and zinc intakes in the three months before conceiving a child were significantly less likely to have high blood pressure during pregnancy, a new study suggests.
According to a new studywomen with higher calcium and zinc intake in the three months before conceiving a child are significantly less likely to have high blood pressure during pregnancy (also known as “pregnancy-induced hypertension”).
“Our results highlight the importance of dietary calcium and zinc intake before conception to reduce the risk of gestational hypertension,” says Liping Lu, author of the research and professor at Ball State University. “Zinc and calcium intake before conception can come from diet and supplements,” she adds.
“Women’s health in the period before conception is closely linked to the course of the pregnancy that follows,” also indicates the researcher.
Pregnancy-induced hypertension: calcium and zinc intake reduces the risk
To reach these conclusions, his team conducted two separate studies using medical data from more than 7,700 pregnant women, all residing in the United States. The researchers analyzed the association between preconception intakes of each mineral and rates of pregnancy-induced hypertension, after accounting for all other factors impacting the condition.
Results showed that women in the highest quintile of preconception calcium intake were 24% less likely to have hypertension during pregnancy than those in the lowest quintile. For zinc, participants with the highest preconception intakes were 38% less likely to have hypertension during pregnancy than those with the lowest intakes.
Calcium and zinc are both known to play important roles in metabolic processes related to maintaining healthy blood vessels, providing a plausible biological explanation for the idea that these minerals might help prevent pregnancy-induced hypertension.
Pregnancy-induced hypertension: what are the risks for the mother?
High blood pressure occurring during pregnancy is a source of complications. These complications can sometimes even be life-threatening with the risk of pre-eclampsia, which can:
– develop into eclampsia;
– cause the occurrence of a retroplacental hematoma.
“Retroplacental hematoma forms at the level of the placenta’s attachment zone, on the internal wall of the uterus. It causes a more or less significant detachment of the placenta”, explains Health Insurance.
Pregnancy-induced hypertension can also have negative impacts on the newborn.
