Prenatal Supplementation with Docosahexaenoic Acid Has No Effect on Growth through 60 Months of Age.

BACKGROUND

Prenatal supplementation with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) has been shown to increase birth size, but it is unclear whether these differences translate into improved postnatal growth.

OBJECTIVE

We assessed the effect of prenatal supplementation with DHA on offspring weight, length, and body mass index (BMI) through 60 mo of age.

METHODS

We examined growth patterns (height, weight, and BMI) in a cohort of 802 Mexican children whose mothers participated in a randomized, controlled trial of daily supplementation with 400 mg/d of DHA or a placebo from week 18-22 of gestation through delivery, with the use of a longitudinal multilevel model of growth.

RESULTS

Overall, means ± SDs of height-, weight-, and BMI-for-age z scores relative to WHO growth standards at 60 mo were -0.49 ± 0.91, -1.15 ± 1.07 and 0.13 ± 1.11, respectively. There were no significant differences by treatment group (all P > 0.05) for height, weight, or BMI at any age through 60 mo. Similarly, DHA did not affect the average growth or the trajectories for these measures through 60 mo.

CONCLUSION

Prenatal DHA supplementation did not affect height, weight, or BMI through 60 mo of age. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00646360.