WebMD Medical News Laura J. Martin, MD May 19, 2011 -- An
inexpensive dietary supplement appears to help prevent the
serious pregnancy complication preeclampsia in high-risk women,
according to a new study. But researchers say the effect in
lower-risk pregnancies remains to be determined. In the study
from Mexico, women who ate daily food bars containing the amino
acid L-arginine and antioxidant vitamins during pregnancy had a
much lower incidence of preeclampsia than women who ate bars
containing the antioxidant vitamins alone or bars containing
neither supplement. Most of the women had a history of
preeclampsia and all were considered at high risk for the
complication. Preeclampsia affects 2% to 8% of pregnant women
overall and a much higher percentage of poor women living in
developing countries. In Latin America and the Caribbean,
preeclampsia is the cause of one in four childbirth-related
deaths, according to the World Health Organization.
Preeclampsia, the pregnancy-induced high blood pressure
occurring