A study suggests that giving a fatty acid to premature baby girls may help prevent mental retardation, although some experts say the study was too small to really prove that the supplements help newborns.
Australian doctors from the Women’s and Children’ Hospital in Adelaide tested the fatty acid, DHA, in premature babies to see if it reduces the rate of mental retardation, which is more common in babies born very early. They focused on 657 babies born before 33 weeks – about seven weeks before the end of the average 40-week pregnancy. Half of the babies were placed on a high-DHA diet where breastfeeding mothers took six 500-milligram fish oil capsules while the other half had a standard diet.
Babies underwent standard development tests at 18 months.
Doctors found no difference in mental retardation rates overall or in boys.
But premature girls given the high-DHA diet scored about 5 points higher on a 100-point test, which translates to a 55% reduction in the proportion of girls with a “mild mental delay” and an 80% reduction in the proportion of girls with “significant” mental delay. It has been noted that premature girls generally have lower risks of complications than boys.
Source: USA Today, 14 January 2009
Chapter: Pregnancy :: 20 February 2009
