DHA supplementation and pregnancy outcomes.

Study answer

What this study found

DHA supplementation improved maternal and infant DHA status and was associated with better birth outcomes. Maternal RBC-phospholipid DHA at birth was higher than placebo by 2.6% (P < 0.001), and cord RBC-phospholipid DHA was higher as well (P = 0.001). DHA increased infant size measures, including head circumference (P = 0.012), birth weight (P = 0.004), and birth length (P = 0.022), and reduced very early preterm birth: gestation <34 weeks was 0.6% vs 4.8% with placebo (P = 0.025) and birth weight <1500 g was 0.0% vs 3.4% (P = 0.026). Overall preterm birth was 7.8% vs 8.8%, and no safety…

Study & population

Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in pregnant women from the Kansas City metropolitan area.

Intervention

Pregnant participants in the active arm received 600 mg/day DHA as 3 oral capsules per day, each containing 200 mg DHA from marine algae oil (DHASCO; DSM Nutritional Products).

Key limitation

The birth-outcome analysis included fewer participants than were randomized in the DHA arm (154 of 178), which can reduce precision.

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Original abstract