Formula Supplementation With Long-chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids: Are There Developmental Benefits?

Scott, David T.; Janowsky, Jeri S.; Carroll, Robin E.; Taylor, James A.; Auestad, Nancy; Montalto, Michael B.

doi:10.1542/peds.102.5.e59

Cited by 147 publications

(109 citation statements)

References 10 publications

(10 reference statements)

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“…The influence of postnatal LCPUFA supply on cognitive function in term infants has been investigated in several supplementation studies (Agostoni et al, 1995(Agostoni et al, , 1997Auestad et al, 2001;Birch et al, 2000;Lucas et al, 1999;Makrides et al, 2000;Scott et al, 1998;Willatts et al, 1998a, b). Some randomized controlled LCPUFA trials in term infants younger than 12 months show a positive influence of dietary LCPUFA on cognitive function, as measured with different methods (Agostoni et al, 1995;Willatts et al, 1998a, b).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some randomized controlled LCPUFA trials in term infants younger than 12 months show a positive influence of dietary LCPUFA on cognitive function, as measured with different methods (Agostoni et al, 1995;Willatts et al, 1998a, b). At 12 months of age, an influence of dietary LCPUFA on cognitive function was not observed (Agostoni et al, 1996;Auestad et al, 2001;Makrides et al, 2000;Scott et al, 1998). Only one study reported an influence of LCPUFA in infant nutrition on the Mental Development Index (MDI, Bayley Scales of Infant Development) at 18 months of age (Birch et al, 2000).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other studies, however, did not confirm this (Agostoni et al, 1997;Auestad et al, 1997Auestad et al, , 2001Lucas et al, 1999;Makrides et al, 2000). One study even found lower language developmental scores in infants receiving LCPUFA supplementation (Scott et al, 1998). In summary, results of these postnatal supplementation studies are not consistent.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

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Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids at birth and cognitive function at 7 y of age

et al. 2003

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Objective: During the central nervous system (CNS) growth spurt, rapid accretion of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) takes place. This particularly concerns docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) and arachidonic acid (AA, 20:4n-6), which are thought to play important roles in CNS development and function. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between cognitive performance at 7 y of age and LCPUFA levels in umbilical venous plasma phospholipids, representing the prenatal fatty acid availability, and in plasma phospholipids sampled at 7 y. Design: As part of a follow-up study, the cognitive performance of 306 children, born at term, was assessed at 7 y of age with the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children. Backward stepwise regression analysis was used to study the relationship between the outcomes and LCPUFA status. Social class, maternal intelligence and parenting skills were included as covariables, among others. Results: Results show no significant association with either DHA or AA at birth and the cognitive performance at 7 y of age. The LCPUFA levels at 7 y were not associated with these outcomes either. Consistent with the literature, significant relationships were found between cognitive outcome measures and maternal education, maternal intelligence and the child's birthweight. Conclusions: In conclusion, our results do not provide evidence for a positive association between cognitive performance at 7 y and LCPUFA status at birth or at 7 y of age. Sponsorship: University Hospital Maastricht (Profileringsfonds: financial support) and Royal Numico, Wageningen, The Netherlands (blinded fatty acid analyses of the blood samples at follow-up).

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

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Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids at birth and cognitive function at 7 y of age

et al. 2003

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“…Some of these studies have ruled out confounding variables such as maternal size, age, parity, health, smoking and alcohol consumption [18,21] as well as methylmercury and other contaminants [17]. Adverse effects from excess ω-3 FA consumption by infants through infant formulas that are fortified with ω-3 FA include reduced body growth and head circumference [10,12], decreased blood arachidonic acid (AA) levels [7] and decreased verbal skills [26,42]. Two studies found prolonged ABR latencies in the children born to women who consumed large amounts of seafood [27][28].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reduced auditory acuity in rat pups from excess and deficient omega-3 fatty acid consumption by the mother

Church

Jen

Stafferton

et al. 2007

Neurotoxicology and Teratology

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Consumption of the nutrients omega-3 fatty acids (ω-3 FA) during pregnancy and lactation is considered beneficial to fetal and infant development. It may also reduce the incidence and severity of preterm births by prolonging gestational length. However several recent human and animal studies have reported that over-supplementation with ω-3 FA, especially in the form of fish oil, can have adverse effects on fetal and infant development and the auditory brainstem response (ABR). Our goal was to assess further the effects of ω-3 FA excess and deficiency during pregnancy and lactation on the offspring's auditory acuity as evidenced by their ABR thresholds. Female Wistar rats were given diets that were either deficient, adequate (control) or excess in ω-3 FA from day 1 of pregnancy through lactation. The offspring were ABR-tested at the postnatal age of 24 days. The rat pups in the Excess treatment condition had significantly elevated (worse) ABR thresholds, postnatal growth restriction, and a trend for increased postnatal mortality in comparison to the Control group. The Deficient group was intermediate. In conclusion, excess or deficient amounts of ω-3 FA during pregnancy and lactation in the laboratory rat adversely affected the offspring's auditory acuity. Postnatal thriving was also adversely affected. Consuming or administering large or inadequate amounts of ω-3 FA during pregnancy and lactation seems inadvisable because of the potential for adverse effects on infant development.

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“…A meta-analysis has shown an approximate 3 IQ-point benefit of breastfeeding when compared to infant formulas [5]. Some randomized supplementation studies, comparing term infants fed formulas enriched with DHA or DHA and n-6 PUFA (arachidonic acid (AA) or gammalinoleic acid) or standard infant formulas, have shown beneficial effects on cognitive development [6][7][8][9], but other studies did not confirm this [10][11][12][13][14]. Furthermore, one study found a transient negative effect on linguistic development in infants supplemented with DHA [11,14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal fish oil supplementation in lactation: effect on developmental outcome in breast-fed infants

Lauritzen¹,

et al. 2005

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-Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) accumulates in the brain during the 1st and 2nd years of life. The objective of this study was to see if an increased content of DHA in breast-milk via maternal fish oil (FO)-supplementation affects mental development in term infants. one hundred twenty-two Danish mothers with a habitual fish intake below the population median were randomized to 4.5 g·d -1 of FO or olive oil (OO) for the first four months of lactation. Fifty-three mothers with habitual fish intake in the highest quartile were included as reference group. The effect of the resulting increase in infant DHA-intake and RBC-DHA level was assessed on problem solving ability at nine months and language at one and two years of age. Infants in the three groups performed equally well on the problem test and no association was observed between problem solving and erythrocyte-DHA at four months. Passive vocabulary at one year was lower in the children of the FO-compared with the OOgroup (P < 0.05), but no differences were found at two years of age. Word comprehension at one year was inversely associated with erythrocyte-DHA at four months. The trial indicate a small effect of DHA levels in breast-milk on early language development of breast-fed infants.docosahexaenoic acid / breast-milk / infant development / long-chain n-3 fatty acid / optimal dietary intake Abbreviations: AA: arachidonic acid; CDI: communicative development inventory; DHA: docosahexaenoic acid; FO: fish oil; LCPUFA: long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid; OO: olive oil; PUFA: polyunsaturated fatty acid; RBC: red blood cells.

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Formula Supplementation With Long-chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids: Are There Developmental Benefits?

Abstract: We believe that additional research should be undertaken before the introduction of these supplements into standard infant formulas.

Cited by 147 publications

References 10 publications

Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids at birth and cognitive function at 7 y of age

Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids at birth and cognitive function at 7 y of age

Reduced auditory acuity in rat pups from excess and deficient omega-3 fatty acid consumption by the mother

Maternal fish oil supplementation in lactation: effect on developmental outcome in breast-fed infants

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