[Soy beverages and women's health: evidence review and experts opinion]. / Bebidas de soja y salud femenina. Revisión de la evidencia y opinión de expertos.

Introduction: Soy drinks are an increasingly consumed option within the Western diet. However, there are concerns about potential endocrine disruptor effects and possible impact on women's reproductive health. This review evaluates scientific documents in gynecology and obstetrics under an evidence-based medicine approach. All methods adhered to PRISMA 2020 declaration guidelines. The evaluated studies do not support a positive association between soy intake and early puberty or breast cancer; instead, a protective effect against such neoplasm was observed. Transplacental passage of soy isoflavones and their presence in breast milk has been reported without any maternal-fetal complications nor congenital malformations. Exposure to soy-derived products appears to have a neutral effect on body weight and bone health. Studies performed in adults indicate that soy may promote a minimal increase in thyrotropin (TSH) in subjects with subclinical hypothyroidism. The impact of soy-based foods on gut microbiota appears favorable, especially when consuming fermented products. Many of the human studies have been conducted with isoflavones supplements, isolated or textured soy proteins. Therefore, the results and conclusions should be interpreted cautiously, as these are not entirely applicable to commercial soy beverages.

Introducción: Las bebidas vegetales de soja constituyen una alternativa dentro de la dieta habitual. Sin embargo, existe la preocupación de potenciales efectos en la salud reproductiva de la mujer por mecanismos de disrupción endócrina. En esta revisión se evalúan documentos científicos en el área de la Ginecología y la Obstetricia bajo el tamiz de la medicina basada en la evidencia, respondiendo preguntas estructuradas. La metodología se apegó a las guías establecidas por la declaración PRISMA 2020. Los estudios evaluados descartan un riesgo incrementado de pubertad precoz o cáncer de mama; incluso se aprecia un efecto protector frente a dicha neoplasia. Se ha reportado el paso transplacentario de isoflavonas de soja y su presencia en la leche materna, sin que ello implique una relación con complicaciones materno-fetales o malformaciones congénitas. La exposición a productos de soja no parece influir sobre el peso corporal y la salud ósea de la mujer. Los estudios en adultos indican que la soja favorece un mínimo incremento de tirotropina (TSH) en personas con antecedente de hipotiroidismo subclínico. El impacto de los alimentos basados en soja sobre la microbiota intestinal parece ser favorable para su diversidad, particularmente al consumir productos fermentados. Muchos de los estudios en humanos han sido realizados con suplementos de isoflavonas o con productos que contienen proteínas aisladas o texturizadas de soja. Por tanto, los resultados y las conclusiones deben interpretarse con cautela ya que no son totalmente extrapolables a las bebidas comerciales de soja.

[Non-caloric sweeteners in women of reproductive age - A consensus document]. / Edulcorantes no calóricos en la mujer en edad reproductiva: documento de consenso.

INTRODUCTION: Non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) are food additives that have been used as a possible tool to reduce energy and sugar intake. There is a scientific debate around the real benefits of their use. NNS are substances widely evaluated in the scientific literature. Their safety is reviewed by international regulatory health agencies. Health professionals and consumers often lack education and objective information about food additives based on the best scientific evidence. NNS have been used as a substitute for sucrose, especially by people with diabetes mellitus and obesity. However, concerns related to their possible association with preterm birth have been raised, and also with their use during pregnancy and lactation because of the possibility of metabolic or other consequences in both the mother and offspring. This analysis of the evidence in gynecology and obstetrics presents a review of the most commonly asked questions regarding this matter by health professionals and their patients. This document evaluates a diversity of scientific publications under the sieve of evidence-based medicine and the regulatory framework for food additives to elucidate whether the use of NNS in women in these critical stages of pregnancy and breastfeeding represents a potential risk.

INTRODUCCIÓN: Los edulcorantes no calóricos (ENC) son aditivos de alimentos que se utilizan para sustituir azúcares y potencialmente para reducir la ingesta energética. Existe un debate científico en torno a los beneficios reales de su uso. Los ENC son sustancias ampliamente evaluadas en la literatura científica. Su seguridad es revisada por las agencias regulatorias internacionales del campo de la salud. Los profesionales de la salud y los consumidores con frecuencia carecen de educación e información rigurosa, objetiva y sustentada en la evidencia científica y el juicio clínico sobre el uso de aditivos en los alimentos. Los ENC se han empleado como sustitutos de la sacarosa, en especial por las personas con diabetes mellitus y obesidad. Sin embargo, se han planteado inquietudes relacionadas con su posible asociación con el parto pretérmino y con su uso durante el embarazo y la lactancia, ante la posibilidad de consecuencias metabólicas o de otra índole en la madre o en el neonato. Este análisis de la evidencia en ginecología y obstetricia presenta una revisión que intenta responder a preguntas que habitualmente se hacen al respecto los profesionales de la salud y sus pacientes. En este documento se evalúan diversas publicaciones científicas bajo el tamiz de la medicina basada en la evidencia y del marco regulatorio para aditivos de alimentos con el fin dilucidar si el uso de ENC en las mujeres durante las etapas críticas del embarazo y la lactancia supone o no un posible riesgo.

[Review by expert group in the diagnosis and treatment of anemia in pregnant women. Federación Mexicana de Colegios de Obstetricia y Ginecología]. / Opinión de un grupo de expertos en diagnóstico y tratamiento de la anemia en la mujer embarazada.

BACKGROUND: According to data from the World Health Organization and UNICEF from year 2009, iron deficiency is the most widespread nutritional deficiency worldwide. This deficiency causes an imbalance between needs and iron supply, which consequently results in anemia. Around the world, two million people suffer from anemia, half of which is due to iron deficiency. The most impacted groups are children and teenagers, due to their highest requirements derived from the growing process, and women in their reproductive age, due to their loss of iron derived from menstruating or to their highest iron needs during pregnancy. This increase in needs is not satisfied by the regular diet, since it includes an insufficient amount and/or low bioavailability of iron. PURPOSE: To share with the medical community treating pregnant women the experience of an expert group so that they always bear in mind the repercussions caused by anemia during pregnancy, know more about the diagnostic possibilities and have a reference point for prescribing iron supplements. METHOD: The consensus method was used through the expert panel group technique. Two rounds were taken for structuring the clinical questions. The first one was to facilitate working groups their focusing in the clinical topics and the population of interest; the second one was to aid in posing specific questions observing the Patient, Intervention, Compare and Outcome (PICO) structure. The primary and clinical secondary study variables were defined by the working groups from the previously developed questions and during the face-to-face working period, according to the natural history of the disease: risk factors, diagnostic classification, (either pharmacological or non pharmacological) treatment and prognosis. The level of evidence and clinical recommendation was classified based on the Evidence Classification Level and Clinical Recommendation of the Medicine Group based on Evidence from Oxford University. RESULTS: In Mexico, 20.6% of pregnant women suffer from anemia, especially those between 15 and 16 years old, who prevail in 42.4% and 34.3% percent, respectively. Almost half the cases are due to iron deficiency. This type of anemia is associated with a higher risk of pre-term delivery, of low birth weight and perinatal death. The first assessment of an anemic pregnant woman shall include the medical history, a physical examination and the quantification of the erythrocyte indices, serum concentrations of iron and ferritin. The measurement of this last one has the highest sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing iron deficiency. Daily oral iron supplementation, at a 60-to-120 mg dosage, may correct most of mild-to-moderate anemias. The most appropriate treatment is with iron salts (iron sulfate, polimaltose iron complex or iron fumarate). In case of intolerance to iron sulfate or fumarate, polimaltose iron is a better tolerated option. Treatment shall be administered until the hemoglobin values are > 10.5 g and ferritin is between 300 and 360 microg/dL, and such levels shall be observed for at least one year. Parenteral administration is an alternative for patients with a severe intolerance to oral administration; even when the possibility of anaphylaxis shall be considered it is lower when using ferrous sacarate. Transfusion is reserved for patients with hemoglobin lower than 7 g/dL or having an imminent cardio-respiratory decompensation. CONCLUSIONS: Iron deficiency is the highest prevailing nutritional deficiency worldwide and its consequences during pregnancy may be highly risky for both the mother and her child. Anemia diagnosis may easily be achieved through a blood analysis including the serum ferritin determination. Serum iron measurement shall not be used as the only marker to set the diagnosis. It is important to rule out other causes, in addition to the deficiencies, which produce anemia in a patient. It is essential to suggest the administration of iron supplements not only during the antenatal period but also after birth o even after a miscarriage to fulfill the need for depleted iron. In severe anemias (hemoglobin being lower than 9.0 g/L), iron doses higher than 120 mg a day may be required. Treatment shall always begin orally, and if this is not well tolerated, parenteral administration shall be used.