Context

The proposition that a deficiency of a single micronutrient, vitamin D, could increase the risk of problems as diverse as gestational diabetes (GDM), pre-eclampsia and low birthweight (LBW) may seem biologically implausible at first sight. However, a growing appreciation of the non-classical actions of vitamin D lends weight to the hypothesis that associations between vitamin D deficiency and susceptibility to these conditions may well be causal. Vitamin D has long been recognised to stimulate pancreatic secretion of insulin; recently it has been reported to regulate placental inflammatory responses implicated in the pathogenesis of pre-eclampsia. Vitamin D deficiency is common in pregnancy in a variety of settings, and …