Pregnant? Omega-3 Essential for Baby's Brain

just a reminder

amount of DHA in their breastmilk.... several years ago the WHO mandated that all formula would contain DHA... this has helped to be sure, but it still doesn't replace the immune building factors that a mother can pass to her child.

With all the people that are being medicated for ADD, it is a good reminder to know that more DHA in pregnancy can help the attention span in babies. It isn't necessarily in pregnancy supplements, either.

http://www.dhadepot.com/PLbackgrdr81703.pdf

SCIENTIFIC BACKGROUNDER
ON DHA AND PREGNANCY/LACTATION
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid
is important throughout pregnancy and lactation for the health of both the mother
and her fetus/infant. A recent National Institutes of Health (NIH) workshop of
fatty acid experts, recognizing the importance of maternal DHA intake,
recommended 300mg/day of DHA as Adequate Intake (AI) for pregnant and
lactating women.1 Some of the research prompting this recommendation
includes:
• Maternal DHA levels decline significantly in the last trimester, the period
during which much of the fetus’ brain, eye and nervous system
development occurs. Significant amounts of maternal DHA are transferred
to the fetus in order to support this development,2,3
• Low maternal and newborn DHA levels have been reported in closely
spaced pregnancies (compared to first pregnancies)4 and multiple births
(compared tosingleton births),5
• In preterm infants, DHA levels in the umbilical artery wall, which reflect the
long-term fetal DHA status, have been positively correlated to newborn
head circumference, weight and length,6
• Newborn DHA status has a strong positive correlation to maternal DHA
statusand dietary intake,7
• In a dietary study of 112 pregnant or lactating women in the United
States,the average intake of DHA was 54mg/day, only 18% of that
recommended by experts. Less than 2% of these women met the
recommended DHA AI,8




http://www.dhadepot.com/CNSbackgrdrJPH000928.pdf

Approximately 30% of the structural lipid in the gray matter of the brain is
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA),1 a long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid
that plays a major role in the mental development of infants as well as in the
mental function of children and adults throughout life.

Infants fed standard formulas (devoid of DHA) are not able to maintain DHA
levels in blood or tissue,2-5 while breast-fed and infants fed DHA-fortified formula
usually maintain their birth levels of DHA.4,6-9 A meta-analysis of 26 wellcontrolled
studies showed that children who were fed breast milk (rich in DHA)
perform better on cognitive function tests later in life (by up to 5 IQ points) than
those who were fed standard formula.10 Further, DHA was cited as the likely
component of breast milk affecting significant increases in cognitive outcomes of
breast-fed infants through the first eighteen years of life.11

Intervention studies in
which infants were given either DHA-fortified formula or standard formula have
also shown improvements in neurological outcomes, such as increased speed of
information processing and higher problem-solving scores.8,12-14 In a recent
study, infants fed formulas fortified with DHA and another long-chain
polyunsaturated fatty acid, arachidonic acid (AA) scored (at 18 months of age)
significantly better on the Bayley Mental Development Index compared to infants
fed standard formula.15 In view of the mounting evidence of the importance of
DHA in infancy, a recent National Institutes of Health (NIH) workshop of fatty acid
experts endorsed “the addition of the principle long chain polyunsaturates, AA
and DHA, to all infant formulas.”16

There may be a role for DHA in some behavioral, mood and learning disorders
which affect both children and adults,17,18,19 but additional research is needed.
For example, in a study of lactating women, those receiving DHA supplements
had significantly improved attention and concentration in the postpartum period
over women receiving a placebo.20

my wife took it when our little genius was born. it also helped curb mom's postpartum and nourish the breast milk afterwards.