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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #112876
Title: EFFECTS OF MATERNAL DOCOSAHEXAENOIC ACID (DHA) SUPPLEMENTATION ON NEURODEVELOPMENTAL FUNCTION OF BREAST-FED TERM INFANTS AT 12 AND 30 MONTHS OF AGE

Author
item VOIGT, ROBERT - BAYLOR COL OF MED
item JENSEN, CRAIG - CNRC/BAYLOR COL OF MED
item FRALEY, J - CNRC/BAYLOR COL OF MED
item ROZELLE, JUDITH - MEYER CENTER FOR DEV PEDI
item TURCICH, MARIE - MEYER CENTER FOR DEV PEDI
item Heird, William

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/6/2000
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: The presence of DHA, in human milk but not formula has been cited as a possible explanation of the better mental and psychomotor development of breastfed vs. formula-fed infants. However, the amount of DHA in milk of U.S. women is lower than that of other populations and since milk DHA is dependent on maternal DHA intake, it has been suggested that lactating women and their infants might benefit from supplemental DHA. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of maternal DHA supplementation on the neurodevelopmental status of the recipient infants. Mothers who planned to breastfeed their infants exclusively for at least 4 mo were assigned randomly and blindly to receive either ~200 mg of DHA daily (Group 1) or a placebo (Group 2) for 120 days after delivery. Infant neurodevelopmental status at 12 and 30 mo of age was assessed by the Clinical Adaptive Test/Clinical Linguistic and Auditory Milestone Scale (CAT/CLAMS) and the Gesell Gross Motor Developmental Quotient (GM DQ). At 30 mo of age, each infant was also assessed by the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. Milk and infant plasma phospholipid DHA were approximately 60% and 35% higher, respectively, in Group 1 vs. Group 2. Despite this, there were no statistically significant differences in CAT, CLAMS or GM DQ scores between groups at 1 year of age. At 30 mo of age, there were no differences in CAT, CLAMS, GM DQ, or Bayley MDI scores. In contrast, the DHA supplemented group had a higher Bayley PDI score but there was no correlation between PDI score and plasma phospholipid content of DHA at either 4 or 8 mo of age. We conclude that maternal DHA supplementation may enhance psychomotor development of breast-fed term infants but confers no benefit with respect to mental development.