Levels of Silicon in Maternal, Cord, and Newborn Serum and Their Relation With Those of Zinc and Copper

Background: Evidence of silicon's importance to health has been gradually accumulating. Nevertheless, there are few studies comparing serum silicon levels in newborns with maternal levels. Likewise, little is known concerning the inter-relation between silicon and other trace elements. Objective: The present study evaluated maternal and newborn levels of serum silicon and their relation to those of zinc and copper. Methods: We measured serum silicon, copper, and zinc in 66 pregnant women, in the umbilical cord of their infants, and in 44 newborns, by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. All the samples were from fasted subjects. Results: Serum silicon level in term newborns (20.6 ± 13.2 μmol/L) was significantly higher than in umbilical cord (8.9 ± 3.5 μmol/L; P 
Source: Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition - Category: Gastroenterology Tags: Original Articles: Nutrition Source Type: research