Influence of sociodemographic, lifestyle and genetic characteristics on maternal DHA and other polyunsaturated fatty acid status in pregnancy: A systematic review

Abstract

is important for the prevention of preterm birth, however there is limited knowledge of the determinants of omega-3 status during pregnancy. The primary objective of this systematic review was to synthesise data from existing studies assessing relationships between sociodemographic, diet, lifestyle and genetic factors and maternal DHA status. Materials and methods: The Medline, Embase, Amed, and CINAHL databases were searched for studies reporting measures of maternal omega-3 status and a sociodemographic/lifestyle/genetic characteristic. Results: Twenty-two studies were included in the final analyses. Higher dietary fish consumption/PUFA intake, higher education level and an older maternal age were associated with higher maternal omega-3 status. Higher alcohol intake, smoking and FADS genotype were each associated with lower maternal omega-3 status. Discussion: Differences in findings between studies make it difficult to draw clear conclusions about the relationship between these factors and maternal omega-3 DHA status, although socioeconomic status may play a role.

Maternal Factors Associated with Levels of Fatty Acids, Specifically n-3 PUFA during Pregnancy: ECLIPSES Study

“…However, not all studies consider all factors together, and have also been carried out at different moments of the pregnancy. Inconsistent results have been reported with n-6 PUFA and maternal factors [8,12,13,18], and to our knowledge, no study has assessed the link between saturated fatty acids (SFA) and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) in a larger sample size than the present study. Consequently, evidence is scarce about the effect of maternal factors on the serum profile of FA as a whole.…”

“…Nowadays, the occidental diet tends not to sufficiently provide n-3 PUFA, and the n-6 PUFA intake tends to be higher than recommendations [33,34]. The main source of n-3 PUFA are fish and seafood, which could be crucial contributors to an adequate level of n-3 PUFA and the n-6/n-3 and AA/EPA ratios during pregnancy, as has been reported previously [8,11,12,18]. As expected, our results showed that fish and seafood consumption positively predicted greater serum concentrations of EPA and DHA and low values of n-6/n-3 ratio and AA/EPA ratio in T1.…”

“…Regarding another unhealthy lifestyle habit, some studies have found that maternal alcohol consumption has been associated with worse n-6 and n-3 FA concentrations [12,15,16,18,53] since it could impair lipid metabolism [59]. However, our results did not find any significant association, probably due to the fact that the amount of alcohol consumption in our sample is low (3.01 g/day ± 15.2) in comparison to women who consume alcohol frequently [16] or moderately-heavily [53].…”

“…Moreover, Pinto et al [12] reported from Brazil that age, low income, and weekly fish consumption was a predictor of better n-3 serum concentrations in plasma phospholipids. In addition, a recent systematic review assessed the influence of maternal characteristics on DHA and other polyunsaturated fatty acids during pregnancy [18]. That study identified educational level, maternal age, fish consumption, smoking, alcohol intake, and fatty acid desaturase genotype to be associated with omega-3 maternal status.…”

Low Omega-3 intake is associated with high rates of depression and preterm birth on the country level

“…We also could not evaluate intrapregnancy changes in PUFA levels or placental transfer mechanisms 94 , or assess the genetic, metabolic, or lifestyle factors that may associate with maternal blood levels of LC Omega-3 PUFA (e.g. FADS genotype, diabetes, alcohol intake, smoking, and LC Omega-3 PUFA supplement use [95][96][97] ).…”