prenatal diet of fish makes for smarter babies

How eating fish during pregnancy could make baby brainier Guardian Unlimited 2/16/07 "A study of 9,000 British families suggests that women who eat seafood during pregnancy could have brainier children. The research suggests that those who avoid fish or do not eat enough of it risk depriving their unborn children of important nutrients that are needed to help brain development...A study of 9,000 British families suggests that women who eat seafood during pregnancy could have brainier children. The research suggests that those who avoid fish or do not eat enough of it risk depriving their unborn children of important nutrients that are needed to help brain development...Mothers who ate more seafood than was considered safe according to US guidelines had children who as toddlers were more advanced in fine-motor, communication and social skills; the children also showed more positive social behaviour and were less likely to have low verbal IQ scores at the age of eight. Those children whose mothers had eaten no fish were 28% more likely to have poor communication skills at 18 months, 35% more likely to have poor fine-motor coordination at three-and-a-half, 44% more likely to have poor social behaviour at seven, and 48% more likely to have a relatively low verbal IQ at the age of eight, compared with the children of women who had eaten more fish than advised by the US guidelines."

Although prenatal choline probably has a much greater effect on memory and intelligence than fish.

More on this story from New Scientist, WebMD "The FDA-EPA advisory warns pregnant women not to eat shark, swordfish, king mackerel, or tilefish. These are the fish more likely to have high mercury levels..."It is very clear that omega-3 fatty acids are very important for brain development," " Newsweek, FoodConsumer.


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