Pregnancy and newborns

Women with high homocysteine levels find it harder to conceive, are at risk from repeated early miscarriages and are over twice as likely to experience pregnancy complications.

5,883 women in Norway were followed through 14,492 pregnancies with their outcomes and complications recorded against their homocysteine levels. When the upper quartile homocysteine level was compared against the lower quartile, the higher homocysteine level led to a 32% increase in risk of pre-eclampsia, 38% increase in premature birth and 101% increase in very low birth weight.