Potential benefits of fish oil supplements given to pregnant mums
Relatively high doses of omega 3-rich fish oil supplements during the second half of pregnancy appear safe and beneficial to the baby.
98 pregnant women were given 4 grams of fish oil (omega 3) supplements or 4 grams of olive oil (omega 6) supplements each day from 20 weeks of pregnancy until the birth of their babies.
Two and a half years latter?
- No overall differences in language skills and growth between the two groups of children
- Children whose mothers took fish oil showed better comprehension, average phrase length, and vocabulary.
- They also had better hand-eye coordination.
- These findings held true even after accounting for the mother’s age and duration of breast-feeding.
- Only non-smokers and those who didn’t routinely eat more than 2 weekly portions of fish were studied.
It would be interesting to follow-up each year to see how long these difference are maintained.
12/23/06 15:26 JR