Table 2.

Summary of human studies investigating the effects of vitamins on weight gain in mother–offspring dyads or in offspring alone

Reference	Study design	Maternal exposure	Exposure	Effect on mother	Effect on offspring
Yajnik et al. (2008)38	Prospective cohort; 700 women from Pune Maternal Nutritional Study in India 6-y follow-up of 653 children	Maternal micronutrient status collected at 18 and 28 weeks of gestation	N/A	N/A	↓ Vitamin B12 at wk 18 and ↑ folate concentration at wk 28 of gestation associated with ↑ adiposity and ↑ insulin resistance Insulin resistance highest in offspring of mothers with ↑ folate and ↓ vitamin B12
Mardones-Santander et al. (1988)100	RCT in Chile 597 women (low-income)	Fortified milk products vs nonfortified (control) products Vitamins B1 (0.2-fold), B3 (3-fold), and B6 (0.5-fold), folic acid (7-fold), vitamin A (3-fold), vitamin C (33-fold), vitamin E (5-fold)	35 weeks of gestation	Fortified product:↑ GWG No effect on postpartum weight	Fortified products:↑ mean birth weight
Changamire et al. (2012) 104	RCT in Tanzania 8468 HIV-negative women	Multivitamin supplement + single-nutrient supplement containing: Multivitamins: vitamins B1 (20 mg), B2 (20 mg), B3 (100 mg), B6 (25 mg), and B12 (0.5 mg), vitamin C (500 mg), vitamin E (30 mg), folic acid (800 μg) Single nutrient: folic acid (250 μg), iron (60 μg) Placebo (control)	Prenatal period Wk 12 to wk 27 of gestation	Multivitamin supplement:↑ total GWG and from week to week Weight more pronounced in third trimester	Multivitamin supplement: ↑ mean birth weight Positive association between maternal and infant weight
Asemi et al. (2014)105	Single-blind RCT in Iran 104 women (under- and overweight)	Multivitamin vs multivitamin/multimineral Multivitamins: vitamins B1 (1.5 mg), B2 (1.7 mg), B3 (20 mg), and B6 (2 mg), folic acid (400 μg), B12 (6 μg), vitamin A (3000 μg), vitamin E (13.5 μg), vitamin D (10 μg), vitamin C (60 mg) Multimineral: calcium (250 mg), iron (27 mg), zinc (25 mg) Single nutrient: 400 μg single nutrient + iron	20 wk total; daily starting at wk 16 of gestation	Multivitamin supplement:↑ mean GWG at wk 28 and at delivery	Multivitamin/mineral supplement:↑ mean birth weight and head circumference
Vaidya et al. (2008)106	RCT in Nepal 4926 pregnant participants; 2.5 y follow-up of 917 children	Multivitamin/multimineral vs folic acid and iron (control) Multivitamin/multimineral: vitamins B1 (1.4 mg), B2 (1.4 mg), B3 (18 mg), and B6 (1.9 mg), and B12 (2.6 μg), folic acid (400 μg), vitamin A (800 μg), vitamin E (10 mg), vitamin D (5 μg), vitamin C (70 mg), iron (30 mg), zinc (15 mg), copper (2 mg), selenium (65 μg), and iodine (150 μg)	Second and third trimesters of pregnancy	N/A	Multivitamin/mineral supplement: ↑ body weight, skinfold thickness in triceps, and head, chest, hip, and mid-upper arm circumference ↓ Systolic blood pressure
Stewart et al. (2011)107	RCT subanalysis in Nepal 1132 women; 6–8-y follow-up of 545 mother–offspring dyads	Folic acid (400 μg) Folic acid (400 μg) + iron (60 mg) Folic acid (400 μg) + iron (60 mg) + zinc (30 mg) Multiple micronutrients: folic acid (400 μg), iron (60 mg), zinc (30 mg), vitamins A (1000 μg), D (10 μg), E (10 mg), B1 (1.6 mg), B2 (1.8 mg), B3 (20 mg), B6 (2.2 mg), B12 (2.6 mg), C (100 mg), and K (2.0 mg) Vitamin A (1000 μg) (control)	Early pregnancy to 3 mo post partum	N/A	↓ Maternal vitamin B12 status associated with ↑ insulin resistance Association not dependent on folic acid
Dougan et al. (2015)108	Prospective cohort of 29160 mother–daughter dyads from NHS II (USA) Baseline measures in 1989, 2-yr follow-up	Self-recall of prenatal vitamin intake	Regular intake during pregnancy	N/A	No effect on body weight or waist circumference of nurses’ daughters during childhood or early adulthood

Abbreviations and symbols: GWG, gestational weight gain; HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; N/A, not applicable; NHS, Nurses’ Health Study; RCT, randomized controlled trial; ↑, increased; ↓, decreased.