Gestational and childhood urinary iodine concentrations and children's cognitive function in a longitudinal mother-child cohort in rural Bangladesh.

This article examines the association between early-life iodine intake, measured by urinary iodine concentration (UIC), and cognitive development in children from rural Matlab, Bangladesh, using data from the Maternal and Infant Nutrition Interventions in Matlab (MINIMat) cohort. The study found that iodine intake among pregnant women and children was generally above the World Health Organization's adequacy thresholds, with few participants exhibiting deficiency. Low child UIC (<100 µg/L) was associated with reduced processing speed at 10 years of age, while non-optimal maternal iodine intake during pregnancy showed weak, non-significant associations with slightly poorer verbal cognitive outcomes. Excessive iodine intake in children was common but not linked to adverse cognitive effects, suggesting that in this population, early-life iodine intake has a modest impact on cognitive function.