Parity related changes in obesity and some antioxidant vitamins in non-pregnant women of South-Eastern Nigeria.

BACKGROUND The delivery of many children at short interval is associated with micronutrient depletion and weight gain. However, the relationship between the levels of the micronutrients and the body weight is yet to be ascertained. OBJECTIVES To determine the relationship between parity, body weight and some antioxidant vitamins in non-pregnant Nigerian women. PATIENTS AND METHODS Randomly recruited 200 non-pregnant women, comprising 82 primiparous and 118 multiparous women completed the study. Their age, parity, mid-arm circumference (MAC), waist circumference (WC), weight, height and body mass index (BMI) were determined. The serum levels of vitamins A, C and E were assayed using standard methods. Results : The mean BMI, WC and MAC of the multiparous subjects (parity = 3.0 ± 0.58) were significantly higher than that of the primiparous subjects (parity = 1), (P < 0.05, P < 0.01 and P < 0.01 respectively). Furthermore, there were statistically significant decrease in the vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E in multiparous compared with the primiparous women (P < 0.005, P < 0.05 and P < 0.005), respectively. CONCLUSION Multiparty enhances weight gain, but depletes antioxidant vitamin micronutrients in non-pregnant Nigerian women.