Table 1.
General characteristics of FASSTT Offspring Trial participants at age 3 and 7 years
| Participants at 3 years (n = 39) | Participants at 7 years (n = 70) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Placebo (n = 16) | Folic acid (n = 23) | Placebo (n = 33) | Folic acid (n = 37) | |
| Maternal characteristics | ||||
| Age, yearsa | 27.1 (25.1, 29.0) | 28.8 (27.2, 30.4) | 28.0 (26.4, 29.6) | 29.4 (28.2, 30.7) |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 25.0 (22.9, 27.1) | 25.7 (22.8, 28.6) | 24.3 (23.1, 25.6) | 25.3 (23.5, 27.2) |
| Smoking in pregnancy, % | 38 | 22 | 12 | 19 |
| Alcohol use, % | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Duration of folic acid use at time of enrolment, weeks | 13.5 (8.4, 18.6) | 12.0 (9.0, 15.0) | 13.6 (10.7, 16.4) | 12.8 (10.5, 15.1) |
| Iron supplement use, % | 25 | 22 | 18 | 27 |
| Married, % | 73 | 91 | 88 | 95 |
| Education attainment, yearsb | 19.2 (17.8, 20.6) | 19.7 (18.5, 20.9) | 19.6 (18.5, 20.6) | 19.5 (18.5, 20.4) |
| Homeowner, % | 60 | 76 | 79 | 76 |
| Parity (n) | 2.9 (2.5, 3.3) | 3.2 (2.7, 3.6) | 2.6 (2.3, 2.9) | 2.8 (2.5, 3.1) |
| Week of gestation at labor | 40.0 (39.3, 40.7) | 40.0 (39.3, 40.6) | 40.2 (40.0, 40.7) | 39.9 (3.94, 40.3) |
| Child characteristics at birth | ||||
| Sex, female % | 75 | 65 | 48 | 59 |
| Birth weight, g | 3392 (3144, 3640) | 3317 (3029, 3605) | 3519 (3323, 3716) | 3374 (3188, 3559) |
| Birth length, cm | 51.1 (49.9, 52.4) | 50.6 (49.6, 51.7) | 51.4 (50.4, 52.4) | 50.8 (50.1, 51.5) |
| Head circumference, cm | 34.4 (33.6, 35.2) | 34.4 (33.6, 35.2) | 34.6 (34.1, 35.2) | 34.6 (34.1, 35.1) |
| Apgar at 1st minute | 8.3 (7.6, 8.9) | 8.5 (8.2, 8.8) | 8.5 (8.1, 8.9) | 8.7 (8.5, 8.8) |
| Apgar at 5th minute | 9.0 (9.0, 9.0) | 9.0 (8.9, 9.1) | 9.0 (8.8, 9.1) | 9.0 (8.9, 9.1) |
| Breastfed from birth, % | 56 | 44 | 39 | 46 |
| Child characteristics at follow-up | ||||
| Age at assessment, years | 2.8 (2.5, 3.0) | 2.7 (2.6, 2.9) | 6.8 (6.7, 6.9) | 6.7 (6.7, 6.8) |
| BMI Z-scorec | 0.55 (− 0.39, 1.48) | 0.19 (− 0.19, 0.57) | 0.24 (− 0.11, 0.58) | − 0.08 (− 0.40, 0.23) |
Continuous measures presented as mean (95% CI), unless otherwise indicated. Categorical measures compared using Pearson’s chi-square, as appropriate
aAge of mother at enrolment to the FASSTT trial
bAge of leaving of formal education
cBody mass index (BMI) was calculated as weight in kilograms/height in meters squared. BMI Z-score was calculated based on the Centre for Disease Control Growth Charts and using the LMS method, using the equation Z = (BMI/M)^L − 1)/(L × S) [23]. The parameters of the formula include the following: M which is the median BMI by age, S which corresponds to the coefficient of variation of BMI, and L which allows for age-dependent skewness in the distribution of body mass index [24]