Growing a brainy baby bump
As soon as you see those two pink lines you know you have a tiny human on board. The mother instincts kick in and you want to do everything you can to grow the healthiest baby.
Let me tell you about DHA, it stands for Docosahexaenic Acid, don’t worry I’m glad they abbreviated it too.
It is an omega-3 fatty acid and plays an integral role in the development of the central nervous system. Very small amounts of DHA are made in the body from linolenic acid, but this is not enough to keep up with the high demands of pregnancy. Your baby relies on your intake of omega-3 to develop its brain, nervous system & eyes.
So the increased demand for DHA during pregnancy means you need to up the anti on DHA rich foods like oily fish such as salmon & sardines as well as nuts, seeds, wholegrain & dark leafy veg. As a clinical nutritionist I also recommend that you see a health care practitioner who can guide you in the direction of a good quality supplement.
Fortunately, women with a higher intake of the omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and DHA, may be at lower risk of premature birth, according to two large scientific reviews that studied over 30,000 pregnant women and their babies.
No-One Is Getting Enough
Alarmingly, 80% per cent of Australian adults do not meet the recommended daily intake (RDI) of omega-3, and among those who do, 90% take an omega-3 supplement.[8] Pregnant women are no exception, and omega-3 deficiency affects both their own and their babies’ health.[9]
Unfortunately, it is a little trickier for pregnant women to get enough omega-3, compared with non-pregnant women. Firstly, you need 200 mg more DHA per day when pregnant.[10] Secondly, many women are (rightly!) concerned about the effect of contamination of fatty fish (a rich source of omega-3) with mercury and plasticisers on their baby’s health. They therefore avoid eating it, reducing their intake of omega-3.
The easiest way to get enough omega-3 to support your baby’s health is with adequate supplementation.
Please be aware that there are some very different grades of supplements and fish oils are not one to cut corners on. The quality of the fish oil is crucial and must meet Australian standards. Fish oils can go rancid easily, if you are getting a fishy after taste I can tell you it is most probably oxidized and of poor quality. It is important to make sure your supplements are free from mercury, lead & other toxins, as these are not recommended during pregnancy. This is why I turn to practitioner grade DHA for assurance of the highest quality.
Algae or Fish – What’s Best for Me and My Baby?
As long as you take a high quality, high dose supplement, both fish oil and algal oil will ensure you get the omega-3 fatty acids your baby requires. However, here are some tips for choosing the right supplement for you:
Vegetarian/vegan diet: Algal oil is a great alternative to fish oil for women who are vegetarian, vegan or who just prefer not to consume fish products. Made from algae, this omega-3 supplement is not derived from an animal source. Interestingly, fish get their essential fatty acids from eating algae, so by choosing algal oil, you are skipping the ‘middle man’.
Dosage: To get the benefits of omega-3 for you and your baby, you need a high dose of DHA, at least 600 mg/day. Look for a high potency supplement that contains approximately 300 mg of DHA per capsule; to get the right dose with a less potent supplement you would need to take a handful of capsules, which is especially difficult if you are feeling nauseous or have reflux! Algal oil is naturally higher in DHA than EPA, so it may be easier to get the DHA needed for baby’s brain development with an algal omega-3.
Purity: Algal oil is sustainably grown in a controlled environment that is not exposed to the harmful chemicals and contaminants found in our oceans, such as mercury, heavy metals or pesticides. For this reason, it is a clean source of omega-3. However, if you choose a fish oil made from small, cold water, pelagic fish, and select a supplement that has been purified by a process called ‘molecular distillation’, it will also be free of contaminants and safe for you and your baby. To learn more about how to choose a high purity fish oil, read this blog post.
Enteric coating: If you are one of the many pregnant women suffering from nausea or reflux, you may be reluctant to take fish oil in case it causes fishy burps that aggravate your symptoms. Fortunately, there are some alternatives that will not cause this unpleasant side effect. Algal oil is a vegan omega-3 option that is not derived from fish, and will therefore not have an unpleasant taste if it does repeat on you. Alternatively, an enteric-coated fish oil supplement, utilising special capsules that do not dissolve in the stomach, can help you avoid fishy burps that might make you feel sick.
Practitioner-Quality Omega-3s
Omega-3 fatty acids reduce the risk of premature birth and support your child’s brain development. To get the best results, choose a high dose, high purity omega-3 supplement, and start taking it when you are thinking about trying for a baby, or as soon as you find out that you are pregnant. If you are struggling to decide whether fish oil or algal oil is right for you, book an appointment for advice tailored to your particular needs. Additionally, Practitioner-quality supplements are usually more potent and pure than what is available over the counter, so to get the best, make an appointment with us today.
If maternal levels of DHA are on the low side some DHA can be taken from mothers richest source – her own brain. Mother nature will always put your developing baby first, leaving Mum depleted. This depletion of DHA can then result in postnatal depression. If that is not enough, baby will continue to leach from our stores via breast milk.
So go on, tuck into some oily fish and know that you may have the next Einstein on board.
Gina Urlich
BHSc Nutritional Medicine
[1] Coletta JM, Bell SJ, Roman, AS. Omega-3 fatty acids and pregnancy. Rev Obstet Gynecol. 2010 Fall; 3(4): 163–171. PMID: 21364848.
[2] Judge MP, Harel O, Lammi-Keefe CJ. Maternal consumption of a docosahexaenoic acid-containing functional food during pregnancy: benefit for infant performance on problem-solving but not on recognition memory tasks at age 9 mo. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007;85(6):1572-7.
[3] Colombo J, Kannas K, Shaddy D, Kundurthi S, Maikranz JM, Anderson CJ, et al. Maternal DHA and the development of attention in infancy and toddlerhood. Child Dev. 2004;75(4):1254-67.
[4] Dunstan JA, Simmer K, Dixon G, Prescott SL. Cognitive assessment at 2.5 years following fish oil supplementation in pregnancy: a randomised controlled trial. Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed. 2008;93:F45-F50.
[5] Middleton P, Gomersall JC, Gould JF, Shepherd E, Olsen SF, Makrides M. Omega‐3 fatty acid addition during pregnancy. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018(11):CD003402. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD003402.pub3.
[6] Chen B, Ji X, Zhang L, Hou Z, Li C, Tong Y. Fish oil supplementation improves pregnancy outcomes and size of the newborn: a meta-analysis of 21 randomized controlled trials. J Matern Fetal Neonatal Med. 2016 Jun 17;29(12):2017-27. doi: 10.3109/14767058.2015.1072163.
[7] Middleton P, Gomersall JC, Gould JF, Shepherd E, Olsen SF, Makrides M. Omega‐3 fatty acid addition during pregnancy. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018(11):CD003402. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD003402.pub3.
[8] Meyer B. Australians are not meeting the recommended intakes for omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids: results of an analysis from the 2011–2012 national nutrition and physical activity survey. Nutrients. 2016 Mar;8(3):111. doi: 10.3390/nu8030111.
[9] Meyer B. Australians are not meeting the recommended intakes for omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids: results of an analysis from the 2011–2012 national nutrition and physical activity survey. Nutrients. 2016 Mar;8(3):111. doi: 10.3390/nu8030111.
[10] Weiser MJ, Butt CM, Mohajeri MH. Docosahexaenoic acid and cognition throughout the lifespan. Nutrients. 2016 Feb; 8(99):1-40.