Study focuses on need for nutritional iodine during pregnancy

Pregnant women in Sweden were found to be consuming an inadequate amount of iodine in a recent study.

Iodine is an element that plays a role in producing the hormones that originate in the thyroid and is essential for a baby's neurological development.

That's why pregnant and breastfeeding women need 50 percent more nutritional iodine than everyone else, and the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends consuming 250 micrograms (µg's) per day.

The research team worked with 459 non-smoking, pregnant women from two geographic areas in Sweden.

None of the participants had thyroid disease or diabetes and iodine levels were assessed using urine samples collected during the third trimester of pregnancy.

Median urinary iodine concentration (UIC) was 98 µg/day, far below WHO recommendations, according to results of the study, which was published in the journal Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica.

"Our research reveals an insufficient iodine intake among Swedish women and highlights a need for targeted interventions that optimize iodine nutrition during pregnancy," says lead author Dr. Michaela Granfors of University Hospital in Uppsala, Sweden.

Sweden is not the only country that should be concerned, for the WHO counts many countries and parts of the world in which most households don't have access to iodized salt.

Earlier this year, the American Thyroid Association (ATA) recommended including 150 µg of iodine in nutritional supplements for pregnant and lactating women.

"Pregnant and breastfeeding women in the United States are at risk for mild iodine deficiency," says Dr. Alex Stagnaro-Green. "The addition of 150 µg of iodine in all prenatal vitamins will ensure that the developing brain of the baby during pregnancy and early infancy will have sufficient iodine to develop to its maximal potential."

Common sources of dietary iodine include cheese, cow's milk, eggs, frozen yogurt, ice cream, iodized table salt, saltwater fish, seaweed, soy milk, soy sauce and yogurt, according to the ATA.