Importance of Pre-Conceptual Nutrition

It is estimated that 40% of childbearing age women in the UK do not consume the recommended daily intake of vitamins and minerals (according to RCOG, iron, folate and vitamin D deficiency is relatively common) and almost half of pregnancies in the UK are unplanned.

This suggests that women who may become pregnant may not be at their optimal health around the time of conception, which may put them at risk.

While the importance of nutrition through the pregnancy period is widely accepted, its role during the pre-conceptual period receives little attention in health communications.

According to UK statistics..

• 1 in 7 couples struggle to conceive
• 1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage – with obesity increasing the risk.
• 1 in 10 pregnancies are complicated by pre-eclampsia – which is again more likely amongst the obese.
• 60,000 babies are born prematurely in UK each year – with diet around the time of conception a potential trigger of pre-term birth months later
• 10 babies are still-born each day – with obesity and pre-existing diabetes linked

Not all of the above is preventable (especially in unplanned pregnancy), however there are some changes women can make to reduce risk during the pre-conceptual period – one of them being good nutrition.

Good preconception diet and nutrition can act as a prevention strategy, reducing the risk of subfertility, and increasing the chances of conception and a healthy pregnancy.

There is strong evidence that pre-conceptual nutrition may benefit…

• Prospective mothers: increasing chances of healthy conception. Where IVF is required, it also increases the chances of successful conception.
• Pregnancy and birth: reducing miscarriage, pre-eclampsia, premature birth and stillbirth.
• Babies: with pre-conceptual maternal nutrition linked to reduced birth defects and health problems in childhood.

Guidelines on pre-conceptual nutrition:

• Food Standards Agency (FSA) developed a booklet called: Thinking of Having a Baby
• British Nutrition Foundation covers the guidance on preconception and pregnancy in guideline called: Pregnancy and Preconception
• The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists developed a guideline called: Nutrition in Pregnancy. It suggests that healthy pregnancy might depend as much on pre-pregnancy diet as it does to nutrients consumed during pregnancy.

NHS also provides pre-conception advice: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/planning-pregnancy.aspx