Low Vit.D linked to Preeclamsia

If all it takes to have fewer women suffer from preeclampsia is a little sunlight or a Vitamin D supplement, I say go for it!

FROM MSNBC: A new study finds that women who develop a severe form of pregnancy-related high blood pressure tend to have lower blood levels of vitamin D than healthy pregnant women — raising the possibility that the vitamin plays a role in the complication.

The condition is known as early-onset severe preeclampsia, and while it arises in about 2 to 3 percent of pregnancies, it contributes to about 15 percent of preterm births in the U.S. each year.

Preeclampsia is a syndrome marked by a sudden increase in blood pressure and a buildup of protein in the urine due to stress on the kidneys. Early-onset severe preeclampsia is a particularly serious form that arises before the 34th week of pregnancy.

In the current study, researchers found that vitamin D levels were generally lower among 50 women with early severe preeclampsia compared with those of 100 healthy pregnant women. The average vitamin D level in the former group was 18 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL), versus 32 ng/mL in the latter group.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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