Every mother to be usually has one wish - that of delivering a healthy, full term baby. But scientists now say that the chances of a white woman having a premature baby have greatly multiplied if she has extremely low, cholesterol.
In an investigation conducted by the National Human Genome Research Institute and part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), earlier conclusions that the odds of a premature birth increased if a mother had high levels of cholesterol, were corroborated. However, a new surprise awaited the team when they discovered that low levels of cholesterol in a mum-to-be caused the same results.
This was revealed in the October issue of the journal Pediatrics.
Scientists led by Max Muenke, M.D. from the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland studied 1,058 pregnant women between the ages of 21 and 34 in South Carolina and their babies. A hundred and eighteen of the women had low total cholesterol levels and nine hundred and forty of them had higher levels of cholesterol. The women were all non diabetic nonsmokers and carrying only one child.
The study observed cholesterol levels from their second trimester of pregnancy. They found that as many as 5% of the women with only a fair level of cholesterol had given birth earlier than expected. But 20% of the white mothers with low levels of cholesterol and 12% of those with high cholesterol had given birth prematurely, at least before 37 weeks of gestation.
It was also noticed that there was no increase in premature births among African American women in the low-cholesterol category. But, both white and African American full-term babies born to those with low cholesterol weighed around 5 ounces less than full-term babies born to women having moderate cholesterol.
Study leader, Dr Max Muenke, pointed out, "Based on our initial findings, it appears that too little cholesterol may be as bad as too much cholesterol during pregnancy, but it is too early to extrapolate these results to the general population…For now, the best advice for pregnant women is to follow the guidance of their health care providers when it comes to diet and exercise."
Premature birth could also be the result of genetics and environmental factors such as stress, poor nutrition, and infection.
It is a known fact that babies born prematurely could possibly develop respiratory conditions, deafness, blindness cognitive impairment, and even cerebral palsy.
According to National Human Genome Research Institute Scientific Director Eric Green, “This study sheds important light on the intricate biological mechanisms at work during human gestation.
“In light of these findings, researchers have a renewed impetus to establish the genetic and environmental causes of low cholesterol levels because of its relevance to pregnancy.”
Dr. Muenke and his colleagues are also conducting a number of other investigations for determining the part played by cholesterol in embryonic development. Genes influencing congenital brain defects have been identified and they have established the part that cholesterol plays in modulating the actions of such genes.
