Selenium Improves Maternal Health During Pregnancy

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Of the 70 participating women with gestational diabetes, those who supplemented with selenium for 6 weeks had a significant improvement in blood sugar control, and an 11.5 % increase in glutathione blood levels as well as improved inflammation levels.

Gestational diabetes is one a frequent complications of pregnancy (1) and can be associated with more serious problems such as pre-eclampsia, preterm birth, and a higher frequency of induced C-section deliveries (2, 3). Gestational diabetes increases the risk of getting type 2 diabetes after pregnancy (4, 5) and also has long-term health consequences for offspring, including increasing their risk of becoming overweight or obese (6) and developing type 1 or type 2 diabetes later in life (7).

While research has shown exercise to decrease the risk of gestational diabetes by as much as 36% (p = 0.038), a new study suggests that selenium supplementation to be a benefit to maternal health. In the study, 70 women with gestational diabetes were given either 200 milligrams of selenium (35 women) or placebo (35 women) per day for 6 weeks (from weeks 24 to 28 of pregnancy). Blood samples were taken before and after the supplementation period.

After 6 weeks, the following results were noted in the groups, with significant improvements seen in the ability of those in the selenium group to control their blood sugar as well as achieving healthier levels of inflammation:

While the benefits to improving blood sugar control lie in helping maintain cardiovascular health by helping maintain healthy blood pressure and thereby reduce future risks of cardiovascular disease, the benefits to healthier levels of inflammation also produce long-term cardiovascular health (10), with the mechanism thought to lie in selenium’s ability to inhibit the function of an inflammatory protein called NF-kB (11).

In addition, those in the selenium group experienced an 11.5% increase in blood levels of glutathione (452.33 to 504.57 micromole/Liter) compared to a 7.3% decrease in the placebo group (552.37 to 512.44, p 0.002). As those with poor blood sugar control have high levels of cell damage (12), selenium offers another facet of health maintenance for gestational diabetics.

In the study, “Selenium supplementation in pregnant women with gestational diabetes demonstrated beneficial effects on glucose metabolism, hs-CRP levels, and biomarkers of oxidative stress.”

Source: Asemi, Zatollah, et al. “Effects of selenium supplementation on glucose homeostasis, inflammation, and oxidative stress in gestational diabetes: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.” Nutrition 31.10 (2015): 1235-1242.

© 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

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Posted November 2, 2015.

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY.  You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com.

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