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Prenatal vitamins with iron are routinely recommended for pregnant women in the U.S., but is iron supplementation appropriate for women who are not anemic? Investigators randomized women in the early second trimester (age range, 17–35; BMI range, 19.8–26 kg/m2; hemoglobin ≥13.2 g/dL) to receive 150 mg of ferrous sulfate (50 mg elemental iron; n=370) or placebo (n=357) daily until delivery. The women, who were nonsmokers with singleton pregnancies and no chronic diseases, were followed until 6 weeks after delivery.
The two groups were similar in the incidence of premature labor, duration of pregnancy, birth weight, maternal weight gain, perinatal mortality, number of cesarean deliveries, and frequency of low Apgar scores. However, compared wi…