Determination of Lysine Requirements in Healthy Pregnant Women Using the Indicator Amino Acid Oxidation Technique
Determination of Lysine Requirements in Healthy Pregnant Women Using the Indicator Amino Acid Oxidation Technique
Amino acids are building blocks of protein in our body. It is important that pregnant women eat adequate amount of protein/amino acids to ensure healthy growth and development of the fetus.Lysine is an amino acid that is present in high amounts only in animal foods (meat) and not much in plant foods such as wheat. Currently , it is not known how much lysine is needed to eat during pregnancy.
Current Dietary Reference Intake recommendations for amino acid requirements are based on non-pregnant adults, and minimally based on pregnancy-specific data.To the investigators knowledge, there is no scientific information regarding the amount of lysine needed at different stages of pregnancy.
The investigators hypothesize that current recommendations for lysine intake in pregnant women are underestimated. The investigators also hypothesize that the lysine requirements will be greater during the later stages of pregnancy, compared to early stages.
The purpose of this study is to determine lysine requirements in healthy pregnant women 19-40y,(1st and 3rd trimester) using a modern, safe and quick technique called the indicator amino acid oxidation technique and to compare lysine requirements during early (15-18 weeks last menstrual period) late (33-36 weeks last menstrual period) stages of pregnancy.
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