Pregnant women not getting enough nutrients, warns study

Pregnant women are consuming too much saturated fat, not enough vitamin D, and only one-in-three are taking the required amount of folic acid, a new study has found.

The research, involving 402 mothers-to-be attending the Coombe hospital, Dublin found:

• More than 90% of women exceeded the recommended daily allowance for saturated fat, increasing the risk of gestational diabetes mellitus for the woman and the risk of obesity and Type 2 diabetes mellitus in the baby.
• 99% did not meet estimated average requirements for vitamin D which the study authors’ described as “of major concern”.