Plasma zinc and copper in pregnant Nigerian women at term and their newborn babies.

The concentration of copper and zinc was determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry in 26 normal Nigerian women at term and their newborn babies. Cord zinc was significantly greater than maternal zinc. In contrast, cord copper was lower than maternal copper. There was only a weak correlation between cord copper and maternal copper but none between cord zinc and maternal zinc. There was no correlation between maternal and cord zinc and neonatal birthweight. However, an inverse correlation was found between maternal and cord copper and neonatal birthweight. These results indicate that: (1) zinc has no effect on fetal growth in Nigerian women but (2) copper may have a negative effect on fetal growth.