Vitamin Supplementation in Pre-Pregnancy and Pregnancy among Women—Effects and Influencing Factors in Romania

Avram, Calin; Bucur, Oana Maria; Zazgyva, Ancuța; Avram, Laura; Ruta, Florina

doi:10.3390/ijerph19148503

Open AccessArticle

Vitamin Supplementation in Pre-Pregnancy and Pregnancy among Women—Effects and Influencing Factors in Romania

by

Calin Avram

^1,*

,

Oana Maria Bucur

^1,*,

Ancuța Zazgyva

¹,

Laura Avram

² and

Florina Ruta

¹

George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology, 38 Gh. Marinescu St., 540139 Targu Mureș, Romania

²

Dimitrie Cantemir University, 3-5 Bodoni Sandor St., 540545 Targu Mureș, Romania

^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(14), 8503; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148503

Submission received: 6 April 2022 / Revised: 5 July 2022 / Accepted: 7 July 2022 / Published: 12 July 2022

(This article belongs to the Section Women's Health)

Download Versions Notes

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of the study was to identify the consumption of vitamin and folic acid supplements before and during pregnancy in a group of post-partum women (Romanian, Hungarian, and Roma) from Mureș County, Romania, and the influence of socio-economic and behavioral factors on the consumption of vitamins. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional questionnaire-based study included 1278 post-partum women (during the three days of hospitalization for birth), average age 29.5, registered for giving birth in the three hospitals in Mureș County, 2015–2016. Results: In our sample, 69.58% of the interviewed women did not use any vitamin and folic acid supplements before pregnancy, while 30.70% did not use vitamin supplements during pregnancy. The lack of vitamin supplementation during pregnancy was associated with the low birth weight (<2500 g) of newborns (OR = 2.4, 95% CI [1.6–3.8]) and birth at under 36 weeks of gestation (OR = 0.5, 95% CI [0.2–0.8]). Conclusion: The use of vitamin supplements, including folic acid, continues to be deficient among Romanian women before getting pregnant, as well as during their pregnancy. We observed a lack of vitamin supplementation for pregnant women even if they were influenced by risk factors. This highlights the importance of promoting the benefits of vitamin supplementation equally among all subjects.

Keywords: vitamins; pregnancy; dietary supplements; post-partum women; folic acid; Romania

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Avram, C.; Bucur, O.M.; Zazgyva, A.; Avram, L.; Ruta, F. Vitamin Supplementation in Pre-Pregnancy and Pregnancy among Women—Effects and Influencing Factors in Romania. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 8503. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148503

AMA Style

Avram C, Bucur OM, Zazgyva A, Avram L, Ruta F. Vitamin Supplementation in Pre-Pregnancy and Pregnancy among Women—Effects and Influencing Factors in Romania. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(14):8503. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148503

Chicago/Turabian Style

Avram, Calin, Oana Maria Bucur, Ancuța Zazgyva, Laura Avram, and Florina Ruta. 2022. "Vitamin Supplementation in Pre-Pregnancy and Pregnancy among Women—Effects and Influencing Factors in Romania" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 14: 8503. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148503

APA Style

Avram, C., Bucur, O. M., Zazgyva, A., Avram, L., & Ruta, F. (2022). Vitamin Supplementation in Pre-Pregnancy and Pregnancy among Women—Effects and Influencing Factors in Romania. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(14), 8503. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148503

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Menu

Vitamin Supplementation in Pre-Pregnancy and Pregnancy among Women—Effects and Influencing Factors in Romania

Abstract

Share and Cite

Article Metrics

Article Access Statistics

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI