Pregnancy: DHA improves children’s health

Taking Omega 3 during pregnancy can help reduce cold symptoms in infants. This was demonstrated by a study published in Pediatrics. Expectant mothers are advised to take 400 milligrams of DHA daily starting from the eighteenth week of pregnancy to promote good health in their babies during the first months of life. The research, conducted by scientists from the Nutrition and Health Sciences Program at Emory University (Atlanta, USA), showed that supplementing the diet with DHA during pregnancy lowers the frequency of colds in one-month-old infants. Moreover, at 1, 3, and 6 months of age, infants whose mothers took Omega-3 DHA during pregnancy experienced shorter durations of illness symptoms.

Omega-3: valuable allies against inflammation

Long-chain fatty acids, including docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), influence the immune system and inflammatory processes. However, the effect of maternal DHA intake on children’s health was not fully understood. For this reason, Beth Imhoff-Kunsch and colleagues investigated whether dietary DHA supplementation during pregnancy affected the development of diseases in infants.

Study on Omega-3 in pregnancy and child health

The study was conducted in Mexico. One group of pregnant women was instructed to take 400 milligrams of DHA daily starting from the eighteenth (or in some cases, twenty-second) week of pregnancy and continued until delivery. A second group took a placebo. After birth, the infants’ health was monitored at 1, 3, and 6 months. Data were collected on symptoms of common infant illnesses in the 15 days preceding the checkups. Results showed that at 1 month, babies whose mothers took DHA during pregnancy had fewer cold symptoms. Specifically, cough duration decreased by 26%, mucus production by 15%, and wheezing by 30%. The only exception was skin rashes, which were 22% more frequent. At 3 months, infants of mothers who took DHA spent 14% less time ill. At 6 months, these infants showed reductions in the duration of fever, nasal secretions, breathing difficulties, rashes, and other illnesses by 20%, 13%, 54%, 23%, and 25% respectively. Only episodes of vomiting lasted 74% longer.

From mother to child: the benefits of Omega-3

The authors conclude that Omega-3 supplementation during pregnancy (especially DHA) positively influences infant health up to 6 months of age.

Source

1. Imhoff-Kunsch B, Stein AD, Martorell R, Parra-Cabrera S, Romieu I, Ramakrishnan U, “Prenatal Docosahexaenoic Acid Supplementation and Infant Morbidity: Randomized Controlled Trial”, Pediatrics. 2011 Aug 1. [Epub ahead of print]