A Study to Improve the Vitamin A and Iodine Status of Pregnant Women through a Multiple Micronutrient Fortified Salt

BACKGROUND: To study the efficacy of a multiple micronutrient fortified salt enriched with iron, iodine, vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, niacin, and folic acid in improving serum retinol and iodine status of pregnant women. METHODS: It was a randomized control trial in the antenatal clinic of a hospital. 151 women in the experimental group received a multiple micronutrient fortified salt to cook all their meals, and 150 women in the control group did not receive the fortified salt. Blood was collected in the three trimesters. Urine was collected in their first and third trimesters. Serum retinol, CRP (C-reactive protein), and AGP (Alpha glycoprotein) in blood were assessed, and iodine was assessed in urine. All the women were dewormed once. RESULTS: The inflammation adjusted mean serum retinol in three trimesters in the experimental group was 24.51, 27.29, and 25.68 µg/dL, and it was 28.97, 27.63, and 22.72 µg/dL in the control group. Over the study period of 6 months, the increase in serum retinol in the experimental group was 1.17 µg/dL whereas in the control group serum retinol decreased by 6.25 µg/dL. The experimental group increase in serum retinol is significantly more (p=0.0001) than the changes in retinol in the control group. The prevalence of serum retinol deficiency in the three trimesters was 39.1%,25.8%, and 37.7% in the experimental group and 14%, 22.7%, and 39.3% in the control group, and the change in the experimental group was significant (p=0.001) compared to the control group by binary logistic regression. Over the study period of 6 months there is a significant increase in urinary iodine concentration in the experimental group (p=0.030), showing absorption of iodine from the fortified salt whereas there is a significant decline in the iodine values in the control group (p=0.008). At the end of the study, the urinary iodine concentration of the experimental group was significantly more (p=0.0001) than that of the control group. CONCLUSION: The fortified salt was able to improve serum retinol levels and urinary iodine levels in pregnant women. Trial Registration. This trial was registered retrospectively on 19/02/2022 in the ISRCTN registry with trial ID ISRCTN17782574.