ibs.GRANADA researchers participate in a study awarded publication of the year by the British Journal of Nutrition
The study analyzes the evolution of 400 premature babies with low birth weight for 10 years, showing the relationship between the caloric intake received in the first week of life and neurological sequelae
The work of a team of researchers from ibs.GRANADA and the Hospital Universitario Clínico San Cecilio de Granada has been recognized as the best article of the year by the British Journal of Nutrition, one of the most important international impact factor magazines in the field of nutrition. of nutrition.
The study carried out, which has lasted over a decade, analyzes the evolution of a cohort of more than 400 premature babies born with low weight, less than 1,5 kg, who have been followed up until 5 years of age, relating the intake of caloric intake in the first week of life and subsequent neurological sequelae.
Thus, according to the data obtained, the babies who received lower caloric intake during the first seven days of life had a worse neurological evolution. Specifically, research has shown that nutritional energy restriction during the early postnatal period is associated with visual disturbances and may even triple the risk of childhood cerebral palsy.
The researcher belonging to the group MP21-Neurodevelopment from ibs.GRANADA, responsible for neonatology at the Hospital Clínico San Cecilio and one of the authors of the study, Dr. José Uberos explains: “Nutrition protocols have been changing in the last ten years, today we know that we should contribute 100 kilocalories a day in the first week of life to ensure optimal growth in a low birth weight newborn, but this amount is often not reached due to different circumstances. What we wanted to analyze with this study, throughout the historical series, is precisely what happens in those cases.”
According to the results, the risk of sequelae in some cases has been up to double in children who received less protein in those first seven days of life, essential for their future development. Since in that short space of time a large part of the neuronal connections are developed and functions are established that, in the long term, may be unrecoverable.
Regarding neurological sequelae, indicators such as mental coefficient, behavioral alterations, cerebral palsy or attention deficit have been taken into account. These findings strengthen the scientific evidence base on the importance of nutrition in the early years of life for maintaining good health in children.
Comparison between premature babies with and without low birth weight
Similarly, it has also been studied how the nutrition provided to the fetus during the gestation period influences the premature birth of the baby. Thus, the results of the study show that children who were born prematurely with low weight for gestational age, when analyzed psychologically, between four and five years of age, presented, in a very significant way, more behavioral disorders compared to disorders of premature children born with adequate weight.
In this sense, Dr. Uberos underlines that “it is possible to foresee a greater risk of cognitive disorders when there have been nutritional restrictions during pregnancy. However, this does not depend only on the mother's diet, but also on the existence of caloric deficits for reasons as diverse as placental insufficiency not providing the fetus with adequate nutrients, or some maternal pathology (gestational diabetes, hypertension) or other types of alterations of the placenta.”
In addition to Dr. Uberos, doctors Sara Jiménez, pediatrician at the Hospital Infanta Margarita de Cabra, in Córdoba, have participated as authors of the work; Irene Machado, neuropediatrician; Carolina Laynez, neuropsychologist; Elisabeth Fernández, neonatologist; and Ana Campos, a neonatologist, all of them from the San Cecilio Clinical University Hospital in Granada.