Maternal Methyl-Group Donor Intake and Neonatal Birth Size in Singleton IVF Pregnancies
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Anthropometric Measurements
2.1.1. Mothers
2.1.2. Newborn
2.2. Assessment of Methyl-Group Donor Intake
2.3. Calculation of Methyl-Group Donor Intake Score
2.4. Laboratory Tests
2.5. Statistical Methods
3. Results
4. Discussion
Limitations of Our Study
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
Abbreviations
| BMI | Body Mass Index |
| EFSA | European Food Safety Authority |
| FFQ | Food-frequency questionnaire |
| ISCED | International Standard Classification of Education |
| IVF | In vitro fertilization |
| MDNS | Methyl-donor nutrient score |
| MGD | Methyl-group donors |
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| IVF Conceived (n = 83) | Naturally Conceived (n = 182) | p-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 33.9 ± 4.9 | 31.0 ± 5.2 | 1.24 × 10−5 * t |
| Body weight before pregnancy (kg) | 70.7 ± 15.7 | 69.8 ± 16.7 | 0.58 w |
| Body height (cm) | 166.4 ± 7.6 | 164.1 ± 17.3 | 0.50 w |
| BMI before pregnancy (kg/m2) | 25.6 ± 5.6 | 25.4 ± 5.7 | 0.94 w |
| Gestational weight gain (kg) | 13.4 ± 6.7 | 13.2 ± 3.1 | 0.55 w |
| BF percent after delivery (%) | 28.4 ± 8.5 | 29.5 ± 7.3 | 0.46 t |
| High maternal education (%) | 53.1 | 42.0 | 0.13 p |
| Serum levels after delivery | (n = 61) | (n = 70) | |
| Folic acid (µg/L) | 10.96 ± 5.54 | 8.29 ± 4.72 | 0.0064 * w |
| Vitamin B12 (ng/L) | 288.22 ± 113.82 | 233.70 ± 78.23 | 0.0053 * w |
| IVF Conceived (n = 83) | Naturally Conceived (n = 182) | p-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily intake of MGDs with food | |||
| Folate (µg) | 282.3 ± 137.4 | 279.0 ± 135.7 | 0.74 w |
| Methionine(mg) | 2238.2 ± 858.3 | 2424.6 ± 1117.4 | 0.19 w |
| Choline (mg) | 251.9 ± 98.5 | 243.8 ± 106.8 | 0.70 w |
| Betaine (mg) | 132.5 ± 73.5 | 137.6 ± 63.4 | 0.16 w |
| Daily intake of MGDs with supplements | |||
| Folate (µg) | 98.96 ±119.16 | 100.24 ± 150.16 | 0.59 w |
| Folic acid (µg) | 668.7 ± 1050.9 | 418.8 ± 419.2 | 0.0034 * w |
| Vitamin B12 (µg) | 11.07 ± 31.58 | 7.95 ± 29.002 | 0.0078 * w |
| Daily intake of folate with supplements + food | |||
| Folate (µg) | 381.3 ± 176.1 | 379.2 ± 192.9 | 0.77 w |
| IVF Conceived (n = 57) | Naturally Conceived (n = 94) | p-Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boys (%) | 56 | 64 | 0.56 p |
| Gestational age (weeks) | 38.7 ± 1.3 | 39.0 ± 1.6 | 0.60 t |
| Body weight (g) | 3313.8 ± 528.1 | 3381.9 ± 510.9 | 0.44 t |
| Body length (cm) | 50.1 ± 1.9 | 50.5 ± 2.4 | 0.15 w |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 13.2 ± 1.6 | 13.2 ± 1.4 | 0.49 w |
| Head circumference (cm) | 34.2 ± 1.9 | 34.6 ± 1.8 | 0.29 w |
| Waist circumference (cm) | 31.2 ± 3.0 | 31.5 ± 3.1 | 0.64 t |
| BF (%) | 11.3 ± 2.0 | 11.4 ± 2.1 | 0.90 t |
| MDNS1 | MDNS2 | MDNS3 | MDNS4 | p-Value | Adjusted p-Value * | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gestational age (week) | 38.90 ± 1.36 | 38.94 ± 1.57 | 38.08 ± 1.57 | 39.10 ± 1.55 | 0.53 | |
| Body weight (g) | 3299.19 ± 456.65 | 3323.24 ± 628.06 | 3281.19 ± 482.25 | 3524.08 ± 480.31 | 0.04 | 0.40 |
| Body length (cm) | 50.24 ± 1.95 | 49.79 ± 2.07 | 50.26 ± 2.55 | 51.00 ± 2.32 | 0.09 | 0.66 |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 13.04 ± 1.45 | 13.34 ± 1.99 | 12.93 ± 1.12 | 13.50 ± 1.26 | 0.25 | 0.45 |
| Head circumference (cm) | 34.39 ± 1.84 | 34.63 ± 1.76 | 33.77 ± 2.19 | 34.91 ± 1.33 | 0.07 | 0.32 |
| Waist circumference (cm) | 31.45 ± 3.47 | 31.19 ± 3.18 | 31.15 ± 2.60 | 31.76 ± 3.13 | 0.69 | 0.22 |
| BF (%) | 11.25 ± 2.20 | 10.89 ± 2.50 | 11.53 ± 1.85 | 11.57 ± 1.50 | 0.64 | 0.90 |
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Bokor, S.; Felső, R.; Csölle, I.; Oláh, T.; Szabó, N.; Herczeg, R.; Gyenesei, A.; Vass, R.A.; Funke, S.; Ertl, T.; et al. Maternal Methyl-Group Donor Intake and Neonatal Birth Size in Singleton IVF Pregnancies. Nutrients 2026, 18, 1693. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18111693
Bokor S, Felső R, Csölle I, Oláh T, Szabó N, Herczeg R, Gyenesei A, Vass RA, Funke S, Ertl T, et al. Maternal Methyl-Group Donor Intake and Neonatal Birth Size in Singleton IVF Pregnancies. Nutrients. 2026; 18(11):1693. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18111693
Chicago/Turabian StyleBokor, Szilvia, Regina Felső, Ildikó Csölle, Tícia Oláh, Noémi Szabó, Róbert Herczeg, Attila Gyenesei, Reka Anna Vass, Simone Funke, Tibor Ertl, and et al. 2026. "Maternal Methyl-Group Donor Intake and Neonatal Birth Size in Singleton IVF Pregnancies" Nutrients 18, no. 11: 1693. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18111693
APA StyleBokor, S., Felső, R., Csölle, I., Oláh, T., Szabó, N., Herczeg, R., Gyenesei, A., Vass, R. A., Funke, S., Ertl, T., & Molnár, D. (2026). Maternal Methyl-Group Donor Intake and Neonatal Birth Size in Singleton IVF Pregnancies. Nutrients, 18(11), 1693. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu18111693

