Pregnancy and birth outcomes and exposure to vitamin D (compliance with supplementation and food frequency) among participating women
| Clinical outcomes* | Group A (n=79) | Group B (n=85) | Group C (n=89) | Total (n=253) | P value† |
| Preterm birth‡ | 23 (29.1) | 20 (23.5) | 31 (34.8) | 74 (29.2) | 0.284 |
| Low birth weight§ | 14 (17.7) | 19 (22.4) | 15 (16.9) | 48 (19.0) | 0.609 |
| Pre-eclampsia¶ | 1 (1.3) | 1 (1.2) | 2 (2.2) | 4 (1.6) | 0.99 |
| Gestational diabetes** | 3 (3.3) | 6 (7.0) | 2 (2.2) | 11 (4.3) | 0.283 |
| Stillbirth | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (2.2) | 2 (0.8) | – |
| Vitamin D exposure | |||||
| Compliance to supplement‡‡§§ | 81.01±16.0 | 79.79±13.7 | 77.39±18.0 | 79.4±16.0 | 0.252 |
| Maternal diet†† | n=76 | n=86 | n=81 | n=243 | |
| Food groups consumed* | 4.08±1.27 | 3.74±1.25 | 3.93±1.11 | 3.91±1.22 | 0.213 |
| MDD-W‡‡¶¶ | 29 (38.2) | 21 (24.4) | 25 (30.9) | 75 (30.7) | 0.168 |
Group A: 4000 IU/day; group B: 2000 IU/day; group C: 400 IU/day (control group).
*Data presented as mean±SD.
†P values for continuous variables using ANOVA; categorical variable p values: Fisher exact test if expected value <5; χ2 test if expected value ≥5.
‡Preterm birth identified if birth occurs before 37 weeks gestation.
§Low birth weight defined as neonatal weight ≤2500 g at birth.
¶Pre-eclampsia identified through blood pressure >140/90 mm Hg and proteinuria (≥300 mg).
**Diagnosed through glucose intolerance during an oral glucose tolerance test.
††Food groups: (1) grains, white roots, tubers and plantains; (2) pulses; (3) nuts and seeds; (4) dairy; (5) meat, poultry and fish; (6) eggs; (7) dark green leafy vegetables; (8) vitamin A-rich fruits and vegetables; (9) other vegetables; and (10) other fruits.
‡‡Data presented as n (%).
§§Number of participants: group A=117, group B=115, group C=104.
¶¶MDD-W is a dichotomous indicator of whether women have consumed at least 5 out of 10 defined food groups the previous day or night.
ANOVA, analysis of variance; MDD-W, minimum dietary diversity for women.