New Evidence Available
Updated Recommendation
A new evidence synthesis was published:2021, WHO antenatal care recommendations for a positive pregnancy experience: nutritional interventions update: zinc supplements during pregnancy.
View latest version (2021)Bibliographic Info
GuidelineWHO recommendations on antenatal care for a positive pregnancy experience
Year of Publication2016
Issuing InstitutionWHO
Recommendation
Status
Retired
Recommendation in research context
Only in research contexts
Zinc supplementation for pregnant women is only recommended in the context of rigorous research.
Notes and Remarks
- 1.Many of the included studies were at risk of bias, which influenced the certainty of the review evidence on the effects of zinc supplementation.
- 2.The low-certainty evidence that zinc supplementation may reduce preterm birth warrants further investigation, as do the other outcomes for which the evidence is very uncertain (e.g. perinatal mortality, neonatal sepsis), particularly in zinc-deficient populations with no food fortification strategy in place. Further research should aim to clarify to what extent zinc supplementation competes with iron and/or calcium antenatal supplements for absorption. The GDG considered that food fortification may be a more cost–effective strategy and that more evidence is needed on the cost–effectiveness of food fortification strategies