Pregnancy & Birth
The Benefits of Omega 3 in Pregnancy
During pregnancy, women are advised to make sure they have enough Omega 3 in their diet, but most don’t know why. In a nutshell, DHA (a type of Omega 3) is essential for the proper growth and development of babies’ eyes and brains. It’s also essential for mum’s mental health.
Our brains are 60 per cent fat and around 20 per cent should be made of Omega 3 fatty acids. During pregnancy and infancy, insufficient intake of DHA has been shown in many studies to greatly impact the development of babies’ brains. Research shows that babies with Omega 3/DHA deficient diets have 50 per cent fewer synapses and a study into the diet of 12,000 pregnant women (published in the Lancet) found that children of those who consumed the least Omega 3 were more likely to score in the lowest quartile on IQ tests.
During the last trimester of pregnancy (week 28 onwards) baby’s brain grows by an astonishing 260 per cent so it’s crucial that the mother has adequate DHA intake during this time.
The DOLAB study is one of the most quoted and referred to of recent times and it looked into the effect of Omega 3 on the behaviour, working memory and reading of healthy children aged between 7 and 9. After 6 weeks of taking a DHA supplement, they found that the children with below average reading ability (under the 20th centile) showed significant improvements.
Confusingly, pregnant women are advised to avoid too much fish due to levels of mercury, especially tinned tuna (which incidentally doesn’t contain any Omega 3 contrary to popular belief). They’re also advised not to take Cod Liver Oil (which is the right advice) due to high levels of Vitamin A. Cod Liver Oil isn’t actually very high in Omega 3, but a lot of people think it’s the same as fish oil so they avoid any type of fish supplement completely to be on the safe side.
It’s hugely important for us mums if we want to feel happy and be able to cope with motherhood and life in general. The mother’s body prioritises her DHA stores for the baby’s brain and eye development. It’s literally sucked out of our brains and pumped into the baby’s. There’s growing evidence that post-natal depression is linked to low levels of Omega 3 in the mother’s brain and tissues. When we breastfeed, this continues as breast milk is rich in DHA to support the growing baby. We joke about having ‘baby brain’ and forgetting things, not being able to think straight, losing our train of thought, putting the car keys in the fridge and the milk in the washing machine… this is often attributed to sleep deprivation but many researchers think it’s also a lack of Omega 3. So it’s advisable for women to take a very good quality, pure supplement to reduce the risk of DHA deficiency while being safe when it comes to mercury intake.
Melanie Lawson, founder of Bare Biology, explains why it's critical to get enough Omega 3 whilst pregnant.
About the author:
Melanie Lawson is a mother of three and the founder of Bare Biology, a range of luxury Omega 3 fish oil supplements for pregnancy, children and general health. You can read more about nutrition for mums and children and learn about the benefits of Omega 3 at www.barebiology.com.