A Consideration of the Nutritive State in the Metabolism of Women during Pregnancy

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Abstract
The present report records the metabolic balances of an 18-year-old primapara observed uninterruptedly during the final 65 days of gestation. Her medical history showed an unsatisfactory nutritional background for 6 preceding years. During the metabolic study she was maintained under highly controlled conditions of living and a constant diet. The results are compared with similar ones on two healthy women during the same interval of reproduction. The mean daily storage of nitrogen, phosphorus, chlorine, sulfur, calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium was 1.32, 0.27, — 0.17, 0.27, 0.71, 0.06, 0.11, 0.01 gm., respectively. The influence of nutritive state and physiological conditions other than gravidity upon maternal storage of elements in pregnancy is illustrated by the conspicuous differences in total accumulation of nitrogen and calcium by two women of contrasting nutritional and physiological background studied in this laboratory. The total nitrogen and calcium acquired during the same interval of time was 86.05 gm. as contrasted with 196.25 gm. and contrariwise, 46.29 gm. vs. 24.7 gm. for the women with unsatisfactory and satisfactory nutritional histories, respectively. Uninterrupted metabolic balance studies reveal significant variations among individuals under similar circumstances. The results point to the fact that in practice, maternal nutritive state and physiological constitution are important and should be considered when interpreting dietary requirements for pregnancy.