Regardless of the hope that consumption of high doses of vitamin C and E would lower the risk of woman’s pregnancy complication marked by high blood pressure, a new study shows that there is no benefit of it.

Researchers after the review of nine studies and examination of nearly 20,000 women found that women consuming 1000 milligrams of vitamin C and 400 IU of vitamin E, which is much higher dose compared to those present in prenatal multivitamins also had to face the same problem of pregnancy complication called as preeclampsia.

But instead of this it was seen that women who were given extra doses of vitamin C and E faced higher risk of developing other pregnancy complications. Dr. Sonia S. Hassan of Wayne State University said mostly doctors doesn’t suggest taking these vitamins to women concerned about their risk of developing preeclampsia. She also said that “We are not routinely recommending the use of vitamin C and E, due to the findings of this systematic analysis”.

Well this is not the first study which had doubt on the ability of vitamins to curb preeclampsia. Previous year it was seen that a 4 and ½ year study of nearly 5000 women reveals that those who were taking higher doses of vitamins C and E were10 percent more prone to high blood pressure at the tome of pregnancy compared to volunteers who had taken placebo pills.

Every year nearly 5 percent of American pregnant women suffer preeclampsia, characterized by high blood pressure and protein present in urine and swelling. If this is not treated properly it may cause severe and fatal complication for woman and baby both.

In some previous studies it was found that there is a link between vitamin C deficiency and high risk of premature birth. And it also include those caused due to premature rupture of membranes in this a woman’s water breaks prior the pregnancy reach its full period and labor has started.

It is thought that vitamin C plays a role in maintaining the placenta and the membrane surrounding the fetus at the time of pregnancy. It is possibly due to limitation of oxidative stress, both vitamins C and E are antioxidants. Researchers have been studying to reduce the risk of not only premature birth but also preeclampsia.

In the recent study where Hassan and her colleagues combined results from nine studies and included 19,810 pregnant women they found that 9.6 percent developed preeclampsia, regardless of receiving extra vitamin C and E or a placebo drug. Hassan who is placed at the perinatology Research Branch at Eunice Kennedy Shiver National Institute of child Health and Human Development with her co-author Dr. Agustin Conde-Agudelo and Dr. Roberto Romero said why consumption of antioxidants doesn’t reduce the risk of pregnancy complication. They also said that oxidative stress may play a major role for the disease of preeclampsia but it may not play a role in the way that leads to preeclampsia.

It is also seen that women taking high doses of vitamin C and E are more prone to high blood pressure without protein in urine. These women also have lower risk of abruption placenta, this is where the placenta get detach from the uterine wall, reported by the authors of American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.