There could be a link between anemia in pregnancy and disturbances in fetal development. This was discovered by the team of Dr. Renee Gardner, who examined the data of over half a million children born in Sweden. According to the researchers, anemia before the 30th week of gestation could be linked to intellectual disability, attention deficit, even autism. However, a cause-effect link between the two has not been demonstrated.

The team analyzed data from people born between 1984 and 2011, residing in Stockholm between 2001 and 2011. Scientists focused on rates of neurological development disorders. In particular, they compared rates between children born from anemic women and those born with normal iron levels. In anemic women in the early stages of pregnancy, the rate of autistic children was 4.9%. In non-anemic ones, however, it was 3.5%. In the case of attention deficit disorders, the difference was even more pronounced.

Anemia in early pregnancy was linked to a rate of 9.3% of the disease. In the absence of anemia, the reported rate was 7.1%. Similar results also with regard to intellectual disability: 3.1% against the average 1.3%. Iron plays an essential role in the development of the nervous system. It serves to form new connections between neurons, as well as to create the coating that protects them.

This could explain why iron deficiency at crucial stages of development is linked to disorders of neurological development. However, there is nothing to be afraid of: anemia before the 30th week of gestation is quite rare. That after the 30th week, much more common, seems to be unrelated to such problems.

Source: quotidianosanita.it