Clipping Board » Illness Enters through Mouth ─ The information that has been made public is often just the tip of the iceberg...
Update Date: 2009/03/03 04:09
[Compiled by Cheng Shih-yin / Comprehensive Report]
The latest research by American and Irish scholars shows that women who follow a strict vegan diet, due to a lack of vitamin B12, face a several-fold higher risk of giving birth to babies with defects compared to the general population.
**Five Times Higher Risk of Spina Bifida in Newborns**
The UK's *Daily Telegraph* reported on the 2nd that a research team from Trinity College Dublin's National Institute of Health and the Irish Health Research Board found that women with low B12 intake were 2.5 times more likely to give birth to babies with neural tube defects such as congenital spina bifida. Women deficient in B12 had an even higher risk—five times greater. Spina bifida refers to a split spine or incomplete closure of the spinal column, with symptoms including muscle weakness or paralysis below the affected area, loss of sensation, and impaired bowel and bladder control.
Vitamin B12 is commonly found in meat, dairy, and eggs. It remains unclear why B12 deficiency increases the risk of neural tube defects, but this vitamin is involved in several biochemical reactions in the body.
Dr. Duane Alexander, Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Maryland, who participated in part of the study, stated that vitamin B12 is essential for nervous system function and red blood cell production. The findings suggest that women with low B12 intake not only jeopardize their own health but may also increase the likelihood of their children being born with severe congenital defects.
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ art……url/ d/ a/ 090303/ 78/ 1fcul. html
Lack of B12! Vegan Women More Likely to Have Babies with Defects
[Compiled by Cheng Shih-yin / Comprehensive Report]
The latest research by American and Irish scholars shows that women who follow a strict vegan diet, due to a lack of vitamin B12, face a several-fold higher risk of giving birth to babies with defects compared to the general population.
**Five Times Higher Risk of Spina Bifida in Newborns**
The UK's *Daily Telegraph* reported on the 2nd that a research team from Trinity College Dublin's National Institute of Health and the Irish Health Research Board found that women with low B12 intake were 2.5 times more likely to give birth to babies with neural tube defects such as congenital spina bifida. Women deficient in B12 had an even higher risk—five times greater. Spina bifida refers to a split spine or incomplete closure of the spinal column, with symptoms including muscle weakness or paralysis below the affected area, loss of sensation, and impaired bowel and bladder control.
Vitamin B12 is commonly found in meat, dairy, and eggs. It remains unclear why B12 deficiency increases the risk of neural tube defects, but this vitamin is involved in several biochemical reactions in the body.
Dr. Duane Alexander, Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Maryland, who participated in part of the study, stated that vitamin B12 is essential for nervous system function and red blood cell production. The findings suggest that women with low B12 intake not only jeopardize their own health but may also increase the likelihood of their children being born with severe congenital defects.
Source: http:/ / tw. news. yahoo. com/ art……url/ d/ a/ 090303/ 78/ 1fcul. html