Babies born to anaemic mothers have smaller brains, study finds — SkimNews
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- King's College London and University of Cape Town researchers found babies born to anaemic mothers had total brain volumes 4% lower on average — despite mothers having only mild anaemia — with the gap widening rather than closing through age two.
- Three specific regions — the putamen, caudate nucleus, and corpus callosum — were notably smaller in affected infants; first author Jessica Ringshaw said these govern processing speed, emotion regulation, and executive function.
- The corpus callosum gap grew from 4% smaller at 12 months to 6% smaller at 24 months in babies whose mothers had anaemia, showing the developmental divergence accumulates over time.
- Earlier South African research found comparable brain volume differences persisting at age six, Ringshaw said, adding: 'These aren't children who are catching up.'
- More than a third of pregnant women worldwide have anaemia, with rates highest in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia; WHO progress on reducing anaemia has stagnated over the past two decades.
- The study validated portable low-field MRI scanners as sensitive enough to detect the same brain differences as traditional hospital machines, enabling at-scale infant brain imaging in resource-limited settings, per Professor Steve Williams.
- Ringshaw recommended screening for anaemia and iron deficiency during pregnancy with oral or intravenous iron supplementation, alongside infection management — the study found higher anaemia rates among women living with HIV.
Why it matters: With anaemia affecting over a third of pregnancies globally and concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia, a persistent 4–6% brain volume gap in affected infants maps onto measurable cognitive risk by school age. The validation of portable MRI scanners creates a practical tool for measuring whether iron and infection interventions actually move the needle in the settings where the burden is highest.
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