Changes in the concentrations of biochemical indicators of diet and nutritional status of pregnant women across pregnancy trimesters in Trujillo, Peru, 2004–2005

Table 4 Unadjusted serum concentrations of select biochemical indicators for pregnant Peruvian women across trimesters ¹

Biochemical indicator^2,3	Trimester 1		Trimester 2		Trimester 3		p-value⁵
Biochemical indicator^2,3	n	GM (95% CI)⁴	n	GM (95% CI)	n	GM (95% CI)	p-value⁵
Retinol	66	1.40 (1.34-1.46)^a	65	1.54 (1.46-1.63)^b	62	1.39 (1.31-1.47)^a	0.001
Alpha-tocopherol	66	21.3 (20.3-22.5)^a	65	29.0 (27.5-30.6)^b	62	32.9 (31.4-34.5)^c	≤ 0.0001
Gamma-tocopherol	66	2.67 (2.44-2.92)^a	65	3.35 (3.06-3.68)^b	62	3.49 (3.17-3.83)^b	≤ 0.0001
Alpha-carotene	66	0.18 (0.16-0.20)^a	65	0.19 (0.17-0.21)^a	62	0.22 (0.19-0.25)^b	0.024
Beta-carotene	66	0.20 (0.18-0.23)^a	65	0.19 (0.17-0.23)^a	62	0.25 (0.21-0.30)^b	0.014
Cis-beta-carotene	0	NC⁶	53	0.017 (0.013-0.019)^a	18	0.028 (0.020-0.037)^b	0.01
Beta-cryptoxanthin	66	0.41 (0.35-0.49)^a	65	0.40 (0.34-0.47)^a	62	0.46 (0.40-0.54)^a	0.31
Lutein + zeaxanthin	66	0.41 (0.37-0.45)^a	65	0.58 (0.52-0.63)^b	62	0.61 (0.57-0.67)^b	≤ 0.0001
Trans-lycopene	66	0.047 (0.041-0.054)^a	65	0.052 (0.045-0.061)^a	62	0.080 (0.065-0.095)^b	≤ 0.0001
Total-lycopene	66	0.14 (0.12-0.16)^a	65	0.13 (0.11-0.15)^a	62	0.20 (0.18-0.24)^b	≤ 0.0001
Ferritin⁷	78	102 (100–141)^a	61	37.9 (31.3-45.8)^b	53	23.4 (19.5-27.9)^c	≤ 0.0001
Iron	78	16.1 (14.6-17.8)^a	64	11.8 (10.5-13.2)^b	60	8.47 (7.43-9.71)^c	≤ 0.0001
Unbound iron binding capacity	78	42.5 (40.1-45.1)^a	63	64.6 (61.2-68.3)^b	41	73.5 (67.9-79.5)^c	≤ 0.0001
Total iron binding capacity⁸	78	60.8 (58.9-62.7)^a	63	78.2 (75.2-81.4)^b	40	83.9 (77.9-90.4)^b	≤ 0.0001
Transferrin saturation⁹	78	26.6 (20.0–30.0)^a	63	15.2 (10.0–20.0)^b	40	10.8 (10.0–15.0)^b	0.0001
Selenium⁷	78	1.51 (1.48-1.55)^a	64	1.42 (1.37-1.48)^b	62	1.37 (1.30-1.43)^b	0.0003

¹Does not include cord serum.
²Retinyl palmitate and retinyl stearate were excluded because ≥ 40% of their respective values were < LOD.
³All values expressed in μmol/L unless otherwise noted.
⁴ GM geometric means; 95% CI = 95% confidence interval.
⁵ p-values were calculated using a Mixed Effects Model procedure.
⁶ NC not calculated. Because of laboratory quality control issues, Trimester 1 samples were not analyzed. Therefore, the sample sizes across trimesters are lower for CBC compared with the remaining biochemical indicators.
⁷Values expressed in pmol/L (1 pmol/L = 2.247 ng/ml).
⁸ TIBC total iron-binding capacity. TIBC = IRN + UIBC.
⁹Transferrin saturation = IRN/TIBC. Values expressed in %.
Note: the superscript letters “a”, “b” and “c” are used to distinguish whether trimesters have statistically significantly (p < 0.05) different biomarker concentrations. Trimesters with different letter superscript have significantly different concentrations while those with the same superscript letters do not.

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