Biomarker Candidates of Habitual Food Intake in a Swedish Cohort of Pregnant and Lactating Women and Their Infants
Journal article, 2024

Circulating food metabolites could improve dietary assessments by complementing traditional methods. Here, biomarker candidates of food intake were identified in plasma samples from pregnancy (gestational week 29, N = 579), delivery (mothers, N = 532; infants, N = 348), and four months postpartum (mothers, N = 477; breastfed infants, N = 193) and associated to food intake assessed with semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaires. Families from the Swedish birth cohort Nutritional impact on Immunological maturation during Childhood in relation to the Environment (NICE) were included. Samples were analyzed using untargeted liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS)-based metabolomics. Both exposure and outcome were standardized, and relationships were investigated using a linear regression analysis. The intake of fruits and berries and fruit juice were both positively related to proline betaine levels during pregnancy (fruits and berries, β = 0.23, FDR < 0.001; fruit juice, β = 0.27, FDR < 0.001), at delivery (fruit juice, infants: β = 0.19, FDR = 0.028), and postpartum (fruits and berries, mothers: β = 0.27, FDR < 0.001, infants: β = 0.29, FDR < 0.001; fruit juice, mothers: β = 0.37, FDR < 0.001). Lutein levels were positively related to vegetable intake during pregnancy (β = 0.23, FDR < 0.001) and delivery (mothers: β = 0.24, FDR < 0.001; newborns: β = 0.18, FDR = 0.014) and CMPF with fatty fish intake postpartum (mothers: β = 0.20, FDR < 0.001). No clear relationships were observed with the expected food sources of the remaining metabolites (acetylcarnitine, choline, indole-3-lactic acid, pipecolic acid). Our study suggests that plasma lutein could be useful as a more general food group intake biomarker for vegetables and fruits during pregnancy and delivery. Also, our results suggest the application of proline betaine as an intake biomarker of citrus fruit during gestation and lactation.

infants

metabolomics

pregnancy

lactation

dietary biomarkers

proline betaine

lutein

Author

Mia Stråvik

Chalmers, Life Sciences, Food and Nutrition Science

Olle Hartvigsson

BIO Operations Support

Stefania Noerman

Chalmers, Life Sciences, Food and Nutrition Science

Anna Sandin

Umeå University

Agnes E Wold

University of Gothenburg

Malin Barman

Chalmers, Life Sciences, Food and Nutrition Science

Ann-Sofie Sandberg

Chalmers, Life Sciences, Food and Nutrition Science

Metabolites

2218-1989 (ISSN) 22181989 (eISSN)

Vol. 14 5 256

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Subject Categories

Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Medicine

Nutrition and Dietetics

DOI

10.3390/metabo14050256

More information

Latest update

7/3/2024 9