In this article, we will tell you what this analysis is, what the norm of homocysteine should be in pregnancy 1, 2 and 3 trimester, and what can its deviation from normal values say.
What is homocysteine, and how dangerous is its deviation from the norm?
Homocysteine is a sulfur-containing amino acid, which is formed from an essential amino acid - methionine. In the human body, it comes only with consumed food. Most of all methionine and, as a consequence, homocysteine are rich in products such as chicken and quail eggs, meat, as well as milk and dairy products.
The homocysteine test must be taken not only during pregnancy but also during the planning period , since any abnormalities can be very dangerous. If the content of this amino acid in the blood of a young girl does not correspond to the normal value, it most often can not become pregnant for a long time. In the event that the conception of the baby does happen, the future mother will increase the probability of miscarriage or the onset of premature birth. In some cases, a deviation of the value of homocysteine from the normal can provoke a frozen pregnancy.
What should I do if homocysteine is lowered or elevated in pregnancy?
Despite the fact that a slight decrease in the level of homocysteine from the norm during pregnancy is absolutely normal, there is a certain range beyond which this value should not go. Thus, the content of homocysteine in the blood of a future mother can not be lower than 4.6 and above 12.4 μmol / ml. In this case, if at the end of the first and beginning of the second trimester its value is usually about 6-7 μmol / l, then, as a rule, it increases at the end of pregnancy, and is already of the order of 10-11 μmol / l.
In addition, you must completely give up smoking, drinking coffee and alcoholic beverages. Similarly, the level of homocysteine can be normalized in the case of its reduced content.