Vitamin, mineral and iron supplementation in pregnancy: cross-sectional study

Aim. To assess the use of vitamin, mineral and iron supplements during pregnancy in Zagreb and Novi Sad. Methods. The study was conducted by use of a structured standardized questionnaire consisting of two parts, i. e. data obtained by maternal interview and hospital records. It is designed as a cross-sectional study in two countries (Croatia and Serbia). The study included 893 pregnant women from Zagreb and 6099 pregnant women from Novi Sad. Results. In Zagreb, pregnant women reported highest utilization of vitamin-mineral supplements (n = 508; 56.9 %), whereas in Novi Sad these supplements ranked third (n = 408; 20.3 %), following tocolytics and iron supplements. There was no statistically significant difference in the prevalence of congenital malformations between neonates at in utero exposure to vitamins, minerals and iron supplements and those without such exposure in either Zagreb or Novi Sad arm, with the exception of iron and calcium supplementation in the Zagreb arm. Conclusions. In spite of certain study limitations, the results obtained pointed to the unreasonable and potentially harmful use of these supplements in pregnant women from Zagreb.