A dietary supplement containing semi-amino acids and antioxidants may lower the likelihood of developing preeclampsia in high-risk pregnant women.
A team of Mexican and US researchers studied the effects of consuming supplements on about 700 pregnant women with a previous history of pregnancy complicated by preeclampsia or a close relative experiencing the disorder.
Preeclampsia, in which high blood pressure is developed and protein is found in the urine after the 20th week of pregnancy, affects 5 percent of the pregnancies.
Scientists suspect that low levels of L-arginine or antioxidant vitamins could play an important role in the development of preeclampsia and adopting a diet rich in these compounds or supplementations may lower the risk.
According to the findings published in BMJ Online First, only 13 percent of expectant mothers who eat bars rich in L-arginine and antioxidant vitamins experience preelampsia, while the condition is found in 23 percent of those taking only antioxidant vitamins and 30 percent of the placebo group.
Moreover, women taking amino acid L-arginine and antioxidant vitamins were less likely to give birth prematurely.
"We saw a very strong protective benefit for supplementation with L-arginine and antioxidant vitamins," said study researcher Felipe Vanilla-Ortega of Mexico's Universidad Nacional.
"Of course our findings need to be confirmed. But preeclampsia is a very dangerous condition, and this appears to be a very inexpensive approach for lowering risk in high-risk women," he added.
source press.tv SJM/PKH
