Iodine requirements are increased more than 50% during pregnancy. Iodine deficiency during pregnancy can cause maternal and fetal hypothyroidism and impair neurological development of the fetus. The consequences of iodine deficiency in pregnancy depend upon the timing and severity of the hypothyroidism. Children whose mothers were severely iodine deficient during pregnancy may exhibit cretinism, characterized by profound intellectual impairment, deaf-mutism, and motor rigidity. In iodine-deficient areas, studies have demonstrated that iodine supplementation before or during early pregnancy, increases birth weight, reduces perinatal and infant mortality rates, decreases incidence of cretinism and increases developmental scores in young children. Mild-To-moderate maternal iodine deficiency can cause thyroid dysfunction, but whether it impairs cognitive or neurological function in the offspring remains uncertain.
CITATION STYLE
Aggarwal, S. (2018, April 1). Iodine in pregnancy. Journal of the Indian Medical Association. Evangel Publishing.
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