Tag : Eczema

Washington: According to a new study, taking Vitamin D supplements during pregnancy could substantially reduce the chances of babies up to a year old suffering from atopic eczema. The research, published in the British Journal of Dermatology, revealed that babies had a lower risk of developing atopic eczema in their first year if their mothers took 1000 international units (IU) of Vitamin D a day from when they were 14 weeks pregnant until they delivered. The effect was particularly seen in babies who were later breastfed for more than a month. Atopic eczema is a chronic inflammatory condition that can have a large impact on sufferers, their families, and healthcare. It is estimated that one in six children aged one to five has atopic eczema, and there has been a global rise over recent decades. The study at the University of Southampton Medical Research Council Lifecourse Epidemiology Centre and the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre is the first randomised, controlled trial to show evidence of reduced risk of atopic eczema in infants of mothers who took Vitamin D supplements during pregnancy. More than 700 pregnant women took part in the research -- with 352 taking the supplements from 14 weeks until they gave birth and 351 taking a placebo. The eczema research was part of the UK Maternal Vitamin D Osteoporosis Study (MAVIDOS) and was led by Professor Keith Godfrey, working with Dr Sarah El-Heis, who was first author of the paper. Dr El-Heis said: "Our aim was to see whether taking 1000IU of Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) as a supplement during pregnancy would decrease the risk of atopic eczema in babies. We also wanted to establish whether breastfeeding had any effect on this. "Our results showed that babies of mothers who r ...