Omega-3 fatty acids reduce the risk of premature birth – ScienceDaily

Premature births are the leading cause of death among children under 5 in the world and account for nearly one million deaths a year. Premature babies have a greater risk of developing various long-term conditions, including visual impairment, developmental delay, and learning difficulties.

"We know that premature birth is a critical global health problem, with about 15 million babies born too early each year," says Associate Professor Philippa Middleton of Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth and the Institute for Health Research and Development. in Medicine from South Australia (SAHMRI). "Although most pregnancies last between 38 and 42 weeks, premature babies are those born before 37 weeks – and the earlier a baby is born, the higher the risk of death or poor health."

Associate Professor Middleton and a team of Cochrane researchers have looked closely at long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and their role in reducing the risk of premature labor – especially docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) found in fish fatty fish oil supplements. They examined 70 randomized trials and found that, for pregnant women, the increase in daily intake of long-chain omega-3:

• Reduces the risk of having a premature baby (less than 37 weeks) by 11% (from 134 per 1,000 to 119 per 1,000 births)
• reduced by 42% the risk of having a preterm premature baby (less than 34 weeks) (from 46 to 27 to 1,000 births)
• reduces by 10% the risk of having a small baby (less than 2500 g)

"There are not many options to prevent premature births, so these new discoveries are very important for pregnant women, babies, and the health professionals who care for them," said the professor. aggregated Middleton. "We still do not fully understand the causes of premature labor, so it's always difficult to predict and prevent an early birth, which is one of the reasons why omega-3 supplementation is important. during pregnancy is of such great interest to researchers around the world. "

the Cochrane Review published today was first published in 2006 and concluded that there was not enough evidence to justify the current use of omega-4 fatty acid supplements. 3 during pregnancy. More than a decade later, this updated review concludes that there is high quality evidence that omega-3 supplementation is an effective strategy for preventing premature birth.

"In the UK, many pregnant women are already taking omega-3 supplements by personal choice rather than with the advice of health professionals," said Associate Professor Middleton. "It should be noted however that many supplements currently on the market do not contain the optimal dose or type of omega-3 to prevent premature births.Our study found that the optimal dose was a daily supplement containing between 500 and 1000 milligrams (mg) of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (containing at least 500 mg of DHA) from 12 weeks of pregnancy. "

"Ultimately, we hope that this review will actually contribute to the database we need to reduce premature births, which remain one of the most pressing and difficult maternal and child health problems. solve in all countries of the world. "

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