TABLE 4.
Associations of circulating folate, vitamin B-12, and homocysteine concentrations in early pregnancy and in cord blood with cardiometabolic measurements in children aged 10 y1
| Characteristic | Difference (95% CI) in SDS | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heart rate (n = 4237) | Systolic blood pressure (n = 4295) | Diastolic blood pressure (n = 4295) | Glucose (n = 3092) | Total cholesterol (n = 3092) | HDL cholesterol (n = 3092) | |
| Maternal early pregnancy2 | ||||||
| Folate,3 SDS | 0.02 (−0.02, 0.05) | −0.06 (−0.10, −0.03)** | −0.03 (−0.06, 0.01) | 0.00 (−0.04, 0.05) | 0.02 (−0.02, 0.06) | 0.01 (−0.03, 0.06) |
| ≥8 nmol/L | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference |
| <8 nmol/L | 0.02 (−0.09, 0.13) | 0.17 (0.06, 0.28)** | 0.01 (−0.10. 0.12) | 0.00 (−0.13, 0.13) | −0.07 (−0.20, 0.07) | −0.09 (−0.22, 0.04) |
| Total B-12,4 SDS | 0.01 (−0.03, 0.04) | 0.01 (−0.03, 0.04) | 0.01 (−0.02, 0.05) | −0.06 (−0.10, −0.02)** | 0.03 (−0.01, 0.08) | 0.04 (0.00, 0.08)* |
| ≥145 pmol/L | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference |
| <145 pmol/L | 0.09 (0.02, 0.16)* | 0.03 (−0.04, 0.10) | 0.01 (−0.06, 0.09) | 0.10 (0.01, 0.18)* | −0.05 (−0.13, 0.04) | −0.03 (−0.11, 0.06) |
| Active B-12, SDS | −0.03 (−0.07, 0.01) | −0.03 (−0.07, 0.01) | −0.05 (−0.09, −0.01)* | −0.01 (−0.06, 0.04) | −0.01 (−0.06, 0.04) | 0.02 (−0.03, 0.06) |
| Homocysteine, SDS | −0.02 (−0.05, 0.01) | 0.03 (−0.01, 0.06) | −0.01 (−0.04, 0.03) | −0.01 (−0.04, 0.03) | −0.03 (−0.07, 0.01) | 0.01 (−0.03, 0.05) |
| Folic acid supplement use | ||||||
| No | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference | Reference |
| From early pregnancy | −0.05 (−0.17, 0.06) | −0.11 (−0.23, 0.00) | −0.01 (−0.12, 0.11) | 0.03 (−0.11, 0.17) | 0.05 (−0.08, 0.19) | 0.10 (−0.03, 0.23) |
| From preconception | 0.02 (−0.09, 0.13) | −0.19 (−0.30, −0.08)** | −0.05 (−0.17, 0.07) | 0.01 (−0.13, 0.14) | 0.04 (−0.09, 0.18) | 0.18 (0.04, 0.31)** |
| Cord blood2 | ||||||
| Folate, SDS | −0.02 (−0.05, 0.02) | −0.04 (−0.07, 0.00) | −0.01 (−0.05, 0.03) | 0.01 (−0.04, 0.05) | 0.01 (−0.04, 0.06) | −0.01 (−0.05, 0.04) |
| Total B-12, SDS | −0.01 (−0.05, 0.02) | 0.00 (−0.03, 0.04) | 0.03 (−0.01, 0.06) | −0.04 (−0.08, 0.01) | 0.04 (−0.01, 0.08) | 0.04 (−0.00, 0.08) |
| Active B-12, SDS | −0.04 (−0.08, −0.01)* | 0.01 (−0.03, 0.04) | 0.03 (−0.004, 0.07) | −0.05 (−0.1, −0.01)* | 0.02 (−0.02, 0.07) | 0.05 (0.00, 0.09)* |
| Homocysteine, SDS | 0.03 (−0.01, 0.06) | 0.02 (−0.02, 0.06) | −0.02 (−0.06, 0.01) | 0.05 (0.01, 0.10)* | −0.03 (−0.07, 0.02) | −0.03 (−0.08, 0.01) |
The main models were adjusted for child sex, gestational age at blood sampling, child age at outcome, maternal confounders (parity, age, education, prepregnancy BMI, smoking, alcohol consumption), and child ethnicity. Folate and homocysteine were measured in plasma and total and active B-12 were measured in serum. *P < 0.05. **P < 0.01. SDS, standard deviation score.
For early pregnancy, active B-12 and homocysteine, and cord blood folate, total and active B-12 and homocysteine, the distribution of participants after dichotomization was deemed too uneven for meaningful analyses.
Plasma folate ≥8 nmol/L: n = 3254; plasma folate <8 nmol/L: n = 378.
Serum total B-12 ≥ 45 pmol/L: n = 2301; serum total B-12 <145 pmol/L: n = 1170.