Browsing by Subject "Lactation"

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Dietary supplement use among lactating mothers following different dietary patterns – an online survey
(2024) Delgas, Franziska; Bitsch, Lisa; König, Laura Maria; Beitze, Damaris Elisabeth; Scherbaum, Veronika; Podszun, Maren C.
Background: Breastfeeding is important for the healthy growth and development of newborns, and the nutrient composition of human milk can be affected by maternal nutrition and supplementation. In Germany, iodine supplementation is recommended for all lactating mothers, and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation is recommended for mothers with inadequate or no fish intake. Vitamin B12 supplementation is required for strict vegans during lactation, and other nutrient supplementation may be necessary depending on the individual's nutritional status. To address the lack of data on dietary supplements used by lactating mothers following a vegetarian or vegan diet, an online survey was conducted in Germany, with a focus on iodine, DHA, and vitamin B12. Methods: Study participants were asked to report whether they followed specific dietary patterns (omnivorous [OM], vegetarian [VT], vegan [VN]) as well as their use of dietary supplements. Relationships between diets and supplement use were analyzed using chi-square tests. Results: 2054 lactating women were included (1240 OM, 410 VT, and 404 VN) in this analysis. Within OM, VT and VN, at least one dietary supplement was taken by 67.3%, 84.9% and 98.0% respectively ( p < 0.001). Overall, 53.2% OM, 66.8% VT, 88.4% VN reported taking at least one supplement containing iodine ( p < 0.001). 54.6% OM, 61.7% VT and 58.2% VN reported supplements containing vitamin B12, while 34.1% OM, 40.2% VT and 38.6% VN mentioned supplements containing DHA ( p < 0.05). Conclusion: More than half of the participants reported the use of supplements during lactation with the highest proportion in vegans. However, over one third of the mothers did not report supplementing with iodine, regardless of their dietary pattern and most participants also did not report DHA supplements. It is worrisome that a high number of vegans did not report vitamin B12 supplementation, but this could be partly due to issues with reporting. It is crucial to provide further education to breastfeeding mothers about the importance of taking micronutrient supplements, especially for those following a vegetarian or vegan diet. This will help ensure that mothers and their breastfed infants receive optimal nutrition for a healthy development.
Vergleich der Wirksamkeit von 25-Hydroxycholecalciferol und konventionellem Cholecalciferol in der Fütterung von Zuchtsauen anhand von Blutmetaboliten, Leistungs- und Knochendaten
(2017) Schnor, Stella; Rodehutscord, Markus
In addition to the reproductive performance, the longevity of the sow plays an essen-tial role in the efficiency of piglet production (Pluym et al. 2013). According to Freitag and Wittmann (2009), lameness, in addition to fertility problems, is one of the most common reasons for the culling of sows. Fundament problems are about the occur-rence of multifactorial disease which can be influenced by management, genetic pre-disposition environmental conditions as well as by feed (Schalk and Schafzahl 2010). In this context, vitamin D plays an essential role in regulating the metabolism of calci-um and phosphate as well as the associated bone metabolism (v. Engelhard and Breves 2010). The aim of the present study was to investigate the use of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol as compared to conventional cholecalciferol in the nutrition of sows, and to evaluate the potential effects of the use of 25-hydroxycholecalciferol on performance, health and bone metabolism and the fundamental strength of sows. For this purpose, 145 sows were fed with a concentration of the conventional vitamin D3 of 2000 I.U. / kg and 137 sows were fed with an equivalent concentration of 50 μg HyD (25-Hydroxycholecalciferol) / kg in the first reproductive cycle (pregnancy and lactation). In the second cycle, 99 sows of each group were fed in the same way as in the first production cycle. Performance parameter, body condition and the movement of the sows were captured throughout the observation period. In addition, the plasma concentration of calcium, phosphate and the two bone markers were measured. The bone density was also determined by a computer tomography. There were no signifi-cant differences between the content of conventional vitamin D and 25-hydroxycholecalciferol in terms of performance parameters (whether born alive, still-born, mummified or weaned piglets). The birth and weaning weights of piglets from sows, which were fed with the metabolite 25-hydroxycholecalciferol, tend to be higher but the differences were only significant with sows in the second and third to fifth litter as well as in the sixth to tenth litter. The results of the measurement of the body con-dition and thickness of the fat on the back as well as of the scoring of locomotion, confirmed the excellent status of the flock, in terms of body condition and locomotion. The blood parameters have shown that by feeding the sows with 25-hydroxycholecalciferol, this could result in a significantly higher level of 25-OHD3 plasma concentration. These results confirm the studies of Lauridsen et al. (2010)and Weber et al. (2014) who used the same product. There was no influence on the calcium and phosphate concentration by feeding the sows with 25-hydroxycholecalciferol in this trial. Both groups showed nearly the same concentra-tions of the minerals. The development of the bone markers also displayed the same progress. The CrossLaps of the animals fed with HyD tend to be higher whereas the osteocalcin concentrations were lower compared to the control flock. However, these differences were not significant at any particular time. Even the results of the bone density showed no influence as a result of the feeding of the metabolite 25-hydroxycholecalciferol and both groups had almost the same values in this parame-ter.