Bonnie Worthington-Roberts

Maternal Alcohol Use during Breast-Feeding and Infant Mental and Motor Development at One Year

Abstract The detrimental effects of maternal drinking during pregnancy on fetal health have been documented. The consequences for infants of maternal drinking during breast-feeding are unknown, but research in animals suggests that the infant could be affected by exposure to alcohol through the mothers milk. In a study of 400 infants born to members of a health maintenance organization, we investigated the relation of the mothers use of alcohol during breast-feeding to the infants development at one year of age. Mental development, as measured by the Bayley Mental Development Index (MDI), was unrelated to maternal drinking during breast-feeding. However, motor development, as measured by the Psychomotor Development Index (PDI), was significantly lower in infants exposed regularly to alcohol in breast milk (after alcohol exposure during gestation was controlled for), with a dose–response relation (P for linear trend, 0.006). The infants of breast-feeding mothers who had at least one drink daily had a me...

Prenatal weight gain and postpartum weight loss patterns in adolescents

The standard weight gain curve for pregnant females is used for all ages but its suitability for pregnant adolescents has not been satisfactorily examined. The purpose of this project was to compare prenatal weight gain patterns of 80 adolescents (13-17 yr old) with those of the standard curve. Girls who were chronologically and physiologically younger tended to gain less weight prenatally then older girls. Girls who were underweight prior to pregnancy gained more weight prenatally than other girls. Term weight gain averaged 37 lb. Increase in height was not recorded during the course of the investigation. The development of standard curves for adolescents must be based on a larger study population, but the curves presented here are an important initial step toward achieving this goal.

IMPACT OF SUPPLEMENTAL LYSINE OR TRYPTOPHAN ON PREGNANCY COURSE AND OUTCOME IN RATS

Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of supplemental lysine and tryptophan on pregnancy course and outcome in rats. From day 0 until day 20 of pregnancy, rats received one of the following diets ad libitum: lysine at 50% (L-50), 100% (L-100) or 500% (L-500) excess over controls (C); or tryptophan at 500% (T-500), 1,000% (T-1,000) or 2,500% (T-2,500) excess. One group of rats received a control diet ad libitum and each treatment group had a matched pair-fed group receiving a control diet. No congenital malformations were observed in any of the fetuses. Groups L-50, L-100, T-500 and T-1,000 showed no significant differences in maternal weight gain or fetal condition compared to the controls. L-500 had a comparatively lower maternal weight gain and fetuses of significantly smaller weight and length than any other group, although their food consumption was above “C” level. T-2,500 had a significantly lower maternal weight gain than all groups, although its pair-fed control consumed less diet and did not have a significantly decreased maternal weight gain. T-2,500 had the lowest total fetal weight of any group. In summary, variable levels of lysine or tryptophan supplementation did not cause recognizable fetal malformations. However, diets highly supplemented with lysine or tryptophan may affect pregnancy through a decrease in maternal weight gain and fetal size.