Fish oil pills don’t improve kids’ intelligence: study

Escrito por

There is some evidence that taking fish oil pills during pregnancy can help children’s brain development, but a Spanish study suggests that the supplements make no difference in measures of intellect when the children are six years old.

The findings, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, support the results of an earlier Norwegian study that also found no differences in IQ among seven-year-olds whose mothers did or did not take fish oil supplements while pregnant and breastfeeding.

Fatty acids, such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), that are found in fish and other foods, are considered to be important for the developing fetus. The question has been whether adding more of these fats to mothers’ diets through supplements will further benefit the baby.

The researchers did find, though, that the children of women who had high levels of DHA in their red blood cells around the time they gave birth scored above average on the intelligence tests at age six.

«We observed no significant effect of supplementation on the cognitive function of children, but maternal DHA status may be related to later cognitive function in children,» wrote Cristina Campoy at the University of Granada in Spain, who led the study.

The mothers with high DHA in their red blood cells were not necessarily given fish oil supplements – but, the result could reflect mothers’ intake of DHA from various sources over a longer period of time.

This could mean that long-term fatty acid intake «is more beneficial than receiving supplementation alone during pregnancy,» the researchers wrote.

The current study did not measure the diets of the children, something that could have influenced the results, said Ingrid Helland at Oslo University Hospital, who led the earlier Norwegian research.

«It might be that subtle beneficial effects of [prenatal fish oil] supplementation are being overshadowed by other factors [genetics, social stimulation, nutrition, etc.],» Helland said.

But she is not totally abandoning the idea that taking fish oil might be beneficial.

«If a friend would ask me if she should take supplements or not, I would recommend supplementation, but emphasize that we still do not have any scientific proof that it benefits the child,» she added.

Descargar

Fish oil pills don’t improve kids’ braininess

Escrito por

Despite some evidence that taking fish oil pills during pregnancy can help children’s brain development, a new study suggests that the supplements make no difference in measures of intellect when the kids are six years old.

The findings support the results of an earlier Norwegian study that also found no differences in IQ among seven-year-olds whose mothers did or did not take fish oil supplements while pregnant and breastfeeding.

Fatty acids, such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), that are found in fish and other foods are considered to be important for the developing fetus.

The question, however, has been whether adding more of these fats to mothers’ diets through supplements will further benefit the baby.

In the current experiment, researchers asked expectant mothers during the second half of their pregnancies to take fish oil, fish oil plus a folate supplement, folate alone or a pill that did not contain any supplements.

Nearly seven years later, the team, led by Dr. Cristina Campoy at the University of Granada in Spain, gave intelligence tests to 154 children from this group.

The kids performed similarly on the tests, regardless of what type of pill their mothers had taken during pregnancy.

The results, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, do not mean that fatty acids like DHA are not important.

In fact, the researchers found that the children of women who had high levels of DHA in their red blood cells around the time they gave birth scored above average on the intelligence tests at age six.

These mothers, however, were not necessarily given fish oil supplements. Rather, the result could reflect mothers’ intake of DHA from various sources over a longer period of time, and might mean that long term fatty acid intake «is more beneficial than receiving supplementation alone during pregnancy,» the authors wrote in their study.

A recent study in Australia also found that DHA supplements did not help the visual development of babies (see Reuters Health story of May 26, 2011).

The current study did not measure the diets of the children, something that could have influenced the results, said Dr. Ingrid Helland at Oslo University Hospital, who led the earlier Norwegian research.

«It might be that subtle beneficial effects of (prenatal fish oil) supplementation are being overshadowed by other factors (genetics, social stimulation, nutrition etc),» Helland wrote in an email to Reuters Health.

She is not totally giving up on the idea that taking fish oil might be beneficial.

«If a friend would ask me if she should take supplements or not, I would recommend supplementation, but emphasize that we still do not have any scientific proof that it benefits the child,» said Helland.

Descargar

Fish oil effects on kids’ IQ questioned

Escrito por

A new study conducted at the University of Granada in Spain says taking fish oil during pregnancy has nothing to do with the babies’ intelligence.

Previous studies said adding omega-3 fatty acids including DHA and EPA to pregnant women’s diets could have a positive impact on both the «visual and cognitive development of the child.»

The new study, however, showed that taking fish oil during pregnancy does not seem to increase the intelligence of their progeny once the kids hit six years of age.

Researchers gave the pregnant women either fish oil, fish oil with folate, folate alone, or a placebo and six years later tested their children’s intelligence through a series of definite tests.

Findings showed that children of the mothers in any of the four groups had no significant difference regarding their IQ.

«We observed no significant effect of supplementation on the cognitive function of children, but maternal DHA status may be related to later cognitive function in children,» Dr. Cristina Campoy and colleagues wrote in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Scientists didn’t record and analyze the studied kids’ diet from the time of their birth until they turned six years old, which may possibly have influenced their brain development after birth.

Some other studies have recently questioned the benefits of taking fish oil during pregnancy. A recent Australian study found that DHA did not help the visual development of babies while two other studies say the supplements neither prevent postpartum depression in mothers nor improve cognitive development or acquisition of language in babies.

Some experts, however, believe there are other reasons to take omega-3s during pregnancy besides hoping that the kids may become smarter.

The conflicting studies may confuse some women in deciding whether to take the fish oil supplements during pregnancy or not. Experts say the question may not be answered with confidence by now but women may get the best advice from their trusted doctors.
Descargar

New ‘intelligence’ on fish oil pills

Escrito por

There is some evidence that taking fish oil pills during pregnancy can help children’s brain development, but a Spanish study suggests that the supplements make no difference in measures of intellect when the children are six years old.
The findings, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, support the results of an earlier Norwegian study that also found no differences in IQ among seven-year-olds whose mothers did or did not take fish oil supplements while pregnant and breastfeeding.
Fatty acids, such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), that are found in fish and other foods, are considered to be important for the developing foetus.
The question has been whether adding more of these fats to mothers’ diets through supplements will further benefit the baby.
The researchers did find, though, that the children of women who had high levels of DHA in their red blood cells around the time they gave birth scored above average on the intelligence tests at age six.
“We observed no significant effect of supplementation on the cognitive function of children, but maternal DHA status may be related to later cognitive function in children,” wrote Cristina Campoy at the University of Granada in Spain, who led the study.
The mothers with high DHA in their red blood cells were not necessarily given fish oil supplements – rather, the result could reflect mothers’ intake of DHA from various sources over a longer period of time.
This could mean that long-term fatty acid intake “is more beneficial than receiving supplementation alone during pregnancy”, the researchers wrote.
The current study did not measure the diets of the children, something that could have influenced the results, said Ingrid Helland at Oslo University Hospital, who led the earlier Norwegian research.
“It might be that subtle beneficial effects of (prenatal fish oil) supplementation are being overshadowed by other factors (genetics, social stimulation, nutrition etc),” Helland wrote in an e-mail to Reuters Health.
But she is not totally abandoning the idea that taking fish oil might be beneficial.
“If a friend would ask me if she should take supplements or not, I would recommend supplementation, but emphasise that we still do not have any scientific proof that it benefits the child,” she added. – Reuters

Descargar

Se clausura la primera edición del curso “Diploma de Especialización en Asesoramiento Financiero”

Escrito por

  • El acto tendrá lugar hoy martes, 4 de octubre, a las 18 horas en el Salón de Actos de la Sede Central de Caja Rural de Granada

El curso “Diploma de Especialización en Asesoramiento Financiero. I Edición”, finalizado en septiembre, culmina hoy con la entrega de diplomas. Este programa formativo ha sido diseñado a medida por parte de la Fundación General Universidad de Granada-Empresa con objeto de proporcionar al personal de Caja Rural de Granada la formación necesaria para acceder a la acreditación DAF expedida por la delegación española de la European Financial Planning Association (EFPA).

En el diseño del curso ha participado activamente el Departamento de Economía Financiera y Contabilidad de la Universidad de Granada. Han formado parte de la iniciativa un total de 50 profesionales de Caja Rural de Granada, desde marzo hasta septiembre de 2011.

Programa completo

El programa ha contado con una total de 227 horas, distribuidas de la siguiente forma: 82 horas de clases presenciales; 105 horas de tutorización específica tras las sesiones y trabajo del alumno y 40 horas de evaluación y seguimiento del desarrollo del curso por parte de la dirección académica y atención al alumno.

El título ha sido reconocido por la Escuela de Posgrado de la Universidad de Granada como titulo propio y ha sido impartido por profesores de la Universidad de Granada, así como profesionales de reconocido prestigio relacionados con la materia objeto de la actividad formativa.

CONVOCATORIA:

  • Día: Martes 4 Octubre
  • Hora: 18:00 horas
  • Lugar: Salón de Actos. Sede Central de Caja Rural de Granada

Intervienen en la Mesa de Clausura:

  • Dimas Rodríguez Rute. Director General de Caja Rural de Granada
  • Alfonso Roa Díaz-Regañón. Presidente del Comité de Certificación y Acreditación de EFPA.
  • José Manuel Aguayo Moral. Director Académico
  • Cipriano Palomar García. Jefe de Formación y Empleo de la Fundación General Universidad de Granada-Empresa

Fish oil pills don’t improve children’s intellect

Escrito por

The findings, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, support the results of an earlier Norwegian study that also found no differences in IQ among seven-year-olds whose mothers did or did not take fish oil supplements while pregnant and breastfeeding.

There is some evidence that taking fish oil pills during pregnancy can help children’s brain development, but a Spanish study suggests that the supplements make no difference in measures of intellect when the children are six years old.

The findings, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, support the results of an earlier Norwegian study that also found no differences in IQ among seven-year-olds whose mothers did or did not take fish oil supplements while pregnant and breastfeeding.

Fatty acids, such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), that are found in fish and other foods, are considered to be important for the developing fetus. The question has been whether adding more of these fats to mothers’ diets through supplements will further benefit the baby.

The researchers did find, though, that the children of women who had high levels of DHA in their red blood cells around the time they gave birth scored above average on the intelligence tests at age six.

“We observed no significant effect of supplementation on the cognitive function of children, but maternal DHA status may be related to later cognitive function in children,” wrote Cristina Campoy at the University of Granada in Spain, who led the study.

The mothers with high DHA in their red blood cells were not necessarily given fish oil supplements — rather, the result could reflect mothers’ intake of DHA from various sources over a longer period of time.

This could mean that long term fatty acid intake “is more beneficial than receiving supplementation alone during pregnancy,” the researchers wrote.

The current study did not measure the diets of the children, something that could have influenced the results, said Ingrid Helland at Oslo University Hospital, who led the earlier Norwegian research.

“It might be that subtle beneficial effects of (prenatal fish oil) supplementation are being overshadowed by other factors (genetics, social stimulation, nutrition etc),” Helland wrote in an email to Reuters Health.

But she is not totally abandoning the idea that taking fish oil might be beneficial.
“If a friend would ask me if she should take supplements or not, I would recommend supplementation, but emphasize that we still do not have any scientific proof that it benefits the child,” she added.
Descargar

El Faro de Ceuta

Escrito por

Pág. 28: Inaugurada el Aula Permanente de Formación Abierta

Descarga por URL: http://newcanalugr.ugr.es/medios-impresos/item/download/43220

Descargar

El País

Escrito por

Págs. 30-31: Aún hay clases en la Universidad

Descarga por URL: http://newcanalugr.ugr.es/medios-impresos/item/download/43219

 

Descargar

Ideal

Escrito por

Pág. 4: El Ayuntamiento de Granada debe todavía las cuotas de 2010 de la Universiada

Pág. 8. Publicidad: Cursos de Lenguas Modernas

Pág. 12: «El aire de Granada no es tan malo como lo pintan», Lucas Alados Arboledas, catedrático de Física Aplicada

Pág. 14: La Facultad del Trabajo lleva ocho años sin espacios ni soluciones

Obras en Derecho, Económicas, Arquitectura y centro de posgrado

Pág. 35. Necrológicas: Don José Antonio Sanjuán García

Pág. 54: Solzhenitsyn: de disidente perseguido a líder de masas, por Rafael Guzmán Tirado, catedrático del Departamento de Filología Griega y Eslava

Descarga por URL: http://newcanalugr.ugr.es/medios-impresos/item/download/43218

Descargar

Granada Hoy

Escrito por

Portada: Carlos V esconde el brazo hasta pasado San Lucas

Pág. 15: Carlos V: rey, emperador y con un brazo de quita y pon

Pág. 16: Los últimos menús a 3 euros

La Madraza cuenta su historia en octubre

Descarga por URL: http://newcanalugr.ugr.es/medios-impresos/item/download/43217

Descargar

Miscarriage indictor ‘found in plasma’

Escrito por

A new study may have highlighted a previously unknown contributory factor of miscarriages.

The Miscarriage Association states that the complication affects around 25 per cent of pregnancies in the UK. Now, doctors at the University of Granada have found that low levels of copper and zinc in the maternal plasma have a correlation with a higher chance of miscarriage.

«Despite the significant progress made in reproductive medicine, spontaneous abortion is still the most frequent complication during pregnancy,» said Jesus Joaquin Hijona Elosegui, a researcher at the Department of Pharmacology of the University of Granada.

In addition to blood tests, patients in the study were asked to participate in ultrasound scans and questionnaires.

These tests allowed the researchers to analyse valuable information about other variables such as homocysteine, iodine and folate supplements, thyroid dysfunction and the consumption of drugs in the crucial first weeks of pregnancy – when most miscarriages occur.

Descargar

Fish Oil Doesn’t Improve Kids’ Cognition

Escrito por

A new study suggests that fish oil supplements do not make any difference in the intellect of kids, when they reach six years old. This is in contrast with the previous evidences that taking fish oil supplements during pregnancy speeds up the brain development of the child.

This recent study is also in support to the earlier Norwegian research which found no significant difference between kids of mothers who did or did not fish oil pills during their pregnancy and lactation. DHA or docosahexaenoic acid—type of fatty acid found in fish oil and other foods are said to be      significant in the fetal development. The question which remains unresolved is whether an increase of the amount of intake of this fatty acid will further benefit the baby’s development.

In the said experiment, the researchers interviewed expectant mothers during the mid-second to third trimester of their pregnancy and encouraged them to take fish oil, fish oil with folate supplement, folate pill, and another pill which contains no supplement at all (placebo type).

Dr. Cristina Campoy of the University of Granada, Spain facilitated an intelligence test about seven years later among 154 kids borne to those mothers who were involved in the study. As for the results of the test, the kids were said to have performed similarly and equally, regardless of the type of pill their mothers took during pregnancy. However, as published in the journal American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the study does not connote that fatty acids such as DHA are not important in the course of the pregnancy.

One important finding of the study is that the children of women with high DHA levels around their red blood cells during their delivery scored above average on the intelligence tests at six years old. The abovementioned mothers did not necessarily take fish oil supplements. The researchers said that the results might be a reflection of the mothers DHA intake from over a long period of time, even before they got pregnant. This might also mean that taking fatty acid supplements for a longer term is far more beneficial than receiving supplements during the term of pregnancy alone.

Also, a recent study conducted in Australia also found out that additional DHA supplements did not improve the visual development of the babies.

One of the delimitations of this study is that it did not focus on the diet of the children, which may have brought about any significant difference in terms of their performance in the IQ Test, according to Dr. Ingrid Helland at Oslo University Hospital, lead researcher of the earlier Norwegian study.

“It might be that subtle beneficial effects of (prenatal fish oil) supplementation are being overshadowed by other factors (genetics, social stimulation, nutrition etc),” Helland said in an email.

However, she’s not giving up on the possibility that fish oil might be of benefit to brain development as the results of the taking fish oil may manifest in the long run. This study only measured the effects of fish oil supplements during their 6th year.

“If a friend would ask me if she should take supplements or not, I would recommend supplementation, but emphasize that we still do not have any scientific proof that it benefits the child,” Helland added.
Descargar