Vitamin D Crucial During Pregnancy to Avoid Autism Risks

A deficiency of vitamin D during pregnancy may increase the risks of giving birth to a baby with autism, researchers warn expecting mothers.

The findings come at a time when about one in every 88 children in the United States is affected by autism, a developmental disorder that leads to significant social, communication and behavioral changes.

Previous studies have found an association between autism and maternal vitamin D deficiency. Findings of the current study published in Research in Developmental Disabilities recently re-confirm the claims.

Vitamin D is essential during pregnancy. A severe vitamin D deficiency can lead to infantile rickets, and sufficient intake can reduce childhood wheezing and type 1 diabetes in children.

For the current study, Eva Kocovskaa of the Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow in Yorkhill, UK, carefully analyzed previous studies. They found areas of brain and gene regulation affected by vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy, leading to the development of autism, website Foodconsumer reported.

"Vitamin D deficiency-either during pregnancy or early childhood-may be an environmental trigger for ASD in individuals genetically predisposed for the broad phenotype of autism. On the basis of the results of the present review, we argue for the recognition of this possibly important role of vitamin D in ASD, and for urgent research in the field," Foodconsumer quoted the authors as writing.

Following a diet rich with vitamin D - milk, juice, cereal, orange juice, yogurt and margarine can, to an extent, help in solving this problem. Foods like shiitake and button mushrooms, oily fish (tuna, mackerel, trout, herring, sardines, kipper, carp, anchovies and orange roughy), beef liver, cheese and egg yolks are some of the natural sources of vitamin D apart from sunshine.

Early diagnosis of autism offers better treatment, so efforts have been made from a long time to identify the risk factors and provide a method of early intervention. A study published in Journal of Neuroinflammation found an association between exposure to preservative propionic acid (PA) and autism.