Got Milk? New Mothers Need Drink to Prevent Iodine Deficiency

Got milk? Well, a new study shows that if you're pregnant, you better get some. A baby's brain development might just depend on it.

According to the researchers at Surrey and Bristol Universities, they set out to determine if "mild iodine deficiency during early pregnancy was associated with an adverse effect on child cognitive development."

Severe iodine deficiency is considered the leading cause of preventable brain damage in the world.

Though researchers note that this isn't generally considered a first-world problem, increasing evidence shows that the UK may be mildly iodine deficient.

Results from the study showed that two-thirds of women had iodine deficiency. Looking at urine samples taken from women when they were pregnant, they found that young children with mothers whose iodine levels were low had lower IQs and reading scores.

These children continued to have lower IQs at the age of eight and worse reading ability by the age of nine.

Dr. Sarah Bath, one of the study's authors, believes that this drink can be crucial to a child's developmental health. "We saw a three-point IQ difference between children who were born to mothers with low iodine in early pregnancy and children who were born to mothers above the cut-off," she said, according to the BBC. 

The study concludes, "Iodine deficiency in pregnant women in the UK should be treated as an important public health issue that needs attention."

The National Institutes of Health advises pregnant women to get 220 micrograms of iodine daily. The most commonly consumed sources are dairy products, fish, some fruits and vegetables, and iodized salt. Seaweed is an excellent source, but experts warn against getting more than 1,100 micrograms of iodine a day.

The findings for the study were published in the Lancet.