A recent study carried out at the University of Southampton has found that 90% of pregnant women, following a vegan and plant-based diet, were deficient in crucial vitamins necessary for healthy pregnancies and the well-being of unborn children.

Experts from around the world also came on board to research over 1700 expectant mothers, who follow a diet that typically excludes meat and dairy. The study covered affluent nations such as the UK, New Zealand, and Singapore. The research found that most of the women were lacking in essential vitamins such as B12, B6, and D, as well as folic acid and riboflavin which play essential roles in the developmental stages of foetuses within the womb.

Leading author and professor of epidemiology, Keith Godfrey, expressed concern about the frequency of vitamin deficiencies among women attempting to conceive in wealthy countries.

He described the lack of meat and dairy consumption and the potential it had to create a “lasting effect on unborn children.”

“Our study shows that almost every woman trying to conceive had insufficient levels of one or more vitamins, and this figure is only going to get worse as the world moves towards plant-based diets.”

“People think that nutrient deficiency only affects people in underdeveloped countries – but it is also affecting the majority of women living in high-income nations.”

Published in PLOS Medicine, the study assessed 1,729 women aged 18 to 38 at conception, monitoring many through subsequent pregnancies.