Omega-3 LC-PUFA dietary supplement during pregnancy and lactation influenced the mother and newborn's fatty acid profile and nervonic acid content but did not show effects on visual and cognitive/psychomotor development.

There is controversy about fish-oil supplementation and oxidative damage. This ambiguity should be explored to elucidate its role as modulator of oxidative stress, especially during gestation and postnatal life. This is the objective of this study. One hundred ten pregnant women were divided in two groups: control group CT (400 mL/day of the control dairy drink); supplemented group FO (400 mL/day of the fish oil-enriched dairy drink (±400-mg EPA-DHA/day)). Different biomarkers of oxidative damage were determined in the mother's at enrolment, at delivery and at 2.5 and 4 months postpartum and newborns at delivery and at 2.5 months postpartum. Omega-3 LC-PUFA supplementation during pregnancy and lactation decreased plasma hydroperoxides especially in newborn at delivery (P = 0.001) and 2.5 months (P = 0.006), increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in mothers at delivery (P = 0.024 (SOD)) and after 2.5 months (P = 0.040 (CAT)) and in newborns at 2.5 months (P = 0.035 (SOD); P = 0.021 (CAT)). Also, supplementation increased α-tocoferol in mothers at 2.5 months (P = 0.030) and in umbilical cord artery (P = 0.039). Higher levels of CoQ10 were found in mothers at delivery (P = 0.039) as well as in umbilical cord vein (P = 0.024) and artery (P = 0.036). Our supplementation prevents the oxidative stress in the mother and neonate during the first months of postnatal life, being a potential preventive nutritional strategy to prevent functional alterations associated with oxidative stress that have an important repercussion for the neonate development in the early postnatal life.

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Daily supplementation of maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation with a fish oil-enriched dairy product increases the percentage of DHA and other omega-3 (ω-3) long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs) in mothers (placenta, plasma, erythrocyte membranes, and breast milk) and children (plasma and erythrocyte membranes). This supplementation during critical periods such as pregnancy, lactation, and early development of a newborn may influence the levels of certain inflammatory cytokines, reducing pro-inflammatory cytokines and promoting an anti-inflammatory "environment". In pregnant women who have not received any supplement of omega-3 LCPUFAs, IL-6 plasma levels are higher, while TNF-alpha plasma levels are also higher in their breastfed infant at birth and 2 months thereafter. There could be a relationship between docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and the concentrations of different cytokines.

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