Women who received multiple-micronutrient (MMN) supplementation during pregnancy had fewer low birthweight babies and small-for-gestational age (SGA) babies, according to a Cochrane Database review that evaluated the benefit of oral MMN supplementation during pregnancy on maternal, fetal, and infant health outcomes. 17 trials including 137,791 women were reviewed, with 15 trials carried out in low and middle-income countries that compared MMN supplements with iron and folic acid vs iron with or without folic acid. 2 additional trials compared MMN with placebo. In the 15 trials, researchers found:

• MMN resulted in a significant decrease in the number of low birthweight (LBW) infants or SGA.
• No significant differences were observed for other maternal or pregnancy outcomes, including preterm births, stillbirth, miscarriage, maternal, perinatal, or neonatal mortality, or risk of delivery via cesarean section.
• A single trial comparing MMN vs placebo found no clear differences between groups for preterm birth, SGA, LBW, or maternal anemia in the third trimester.