Nutrition and Prenatal Health - Why Flax Oil Makes Sense During Pregnancy Pregnant women and women who expect to become pregnant are routinely told by doctors to take supplemental folic acid to prevent birth defects and a comprehensive prenatal formula supplying additional vitamins and minerals. We also now know supplemental vitamin E may help to prevent or mitigate preeclampsia, a form of toxemia of pregnancy characterized by high blood pressure, fluid retention and albuminuria (the presence of albumin or sulfur-containing water-soluble proteins in the urine).  This is good advice. The fact that more and more women are
using such nutritional supplements prior to and during pregnancy
should result in optimally healthy babies with good birth weight,
head circumference, and optimal potential intelligence or IQ.
But recent research indicates that another nutrient, not likely to be found in vitamin-mineral supplements may also be critical to insure adequate supplies of during pregnancy and the post-natal period whether mothers are breast- or formula-feeding their infants. Mom, taking care of your baby during pregnancy and immediately following birth by ingesting an adequate amount of a special fats called omega-3 fatty acids will help your child grow up to be healthier adult. Conversely, without adequate amounts of this special fat, your baby may suffer virtually irreversible health problems during childhood and as an adult. Low Levels of Special Fat During Pregnancy Lead to Adult Blood Pressure Problems In the March 2001 issue of Nature Medicine, researchers suggest for the first time that an essential nutrient, alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), when supplied in the early developmental period, can affect blood pressure later in life. A member of the omega-3 fatty acid family, ALA can be converted in the human body to other members of this family such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).  Meanwhile, additional research shows us that this same nutrient
is essential to normal visual and neurological development and that
it's deficit during pregnancy and in the first few months following
birth can result in subtle behavioral disorders as well as possibly
increased mortality during the perinatal period (from the 20th week
of gestation through the 28th day of newborn life).
In the Nature Medicine study, the researchers found that the offspring of a specific breed of rat, with little predisposition for high blood pressure, suffered elevated blood pressure later in life if they experienced a deficiency of omega-3 fatty acids during the perinatal period. Their blood pressure remained elevated even when they were given the nutrient as adults. In the experiment, which involved various dietary regimens, some animals were raised on a diet deficient in omega-3 fatty acids and others on a diet with an adequate supply of the fatty acids in the form of ALA in order to promote normal brain DHA levels. Later, some of the animals were switched to an ALA-rich diet, while others continued to be denied the important nutrient. The researchers found that even as adults with equal brain levels of DHA, animals whose mothers were fed an ALA-rich diet during the earliest pregnancy stages of the study had the lowest levels of blood pressure. Animals given ALA later on as adults had intermediate high blood pressure, but animals deprived of ALA altogether had markedly higher levels. The body uses ALA to manufacture DHA, which is found at high concentrations during the perinatal period in the brain and retina. The animals deprived of ALA and therefore DHA during pregnancy also tended to drink less water and consume more sodium, indicating an aberration in their cellular water/sodium sensors, which influence water-mineral balances and, consequently, blood pressure. These aberrations appear to be permanent, based on this preliminary research.  Brain and Visual Development
Meanwhile, researchers have found that infants require these same essential fatty acids in order to develop normal neurological visual responses. "Essential fatty acids may play their most important role... in the development of the fetal brain," note authors Donald Rudin, M.D., and Clara Felix who add, "By the way, DHA is not only needed in large amounts by the developing brain, but also by the eyes..." In 1971, C. Galli and co-researchers reported that a malnourished fetus who was deprived of adequate amounts of omega-3 fatty acids could suffer "significant, perhaps irreversible developmental damage to the brain."* Rudin and Felix note that during the last trimester of pregnancy, the fetal brain undergoes a "tremendous growth spurt, for which large amounts of Omega-3 DHA... are needed." In fact, these same nutrients are also quite critical to newborn development processes during the first six months of life. However, they caution, "Like everyone else, pregnant women are adversely affected by the deficiencies of the modern, industrialized diet." In other words, their concern is that women may not be receiving adequate supplies of omega-3 fatty acids to cover her own needs which are greater during pregnancy along with those of her baby. Physiological studies have reported abnormalities in brain and visual function of formula-fed infants relative to breast-fed infants. This is probably due to the inadequate amounts of omega-3 fatty acids in commercial formulas. These findings prompted French researchers from the University Bordeaux II, Paris, to study whether altering the fatty acid composition of baby formula could help to boost such levels. Infants of mothers who elected not to breast-feed were randomly assigned to either high or low alpha-linolenic formulas. Infants fed human milk were enrolled concurrently as a reference group. With ALA supplementation, levels of DHA were maintained in a similar range to those children receiving breast milk. Thus, say these researchers, "alpha-linolenic acid supplementation... in premature infant formula can contribute efficiently to the maintenance of the omega-3 status in the premature newborns." Clearly, choice of formula for non-breast- fed babies is critical. Be sure if your child is formula fed, your formula supplies either ALA or DHA or, if possible, both. May Help Reduce Risk of Infant Mortality We also have reason to believe that omega-3 fatty acids are critical to survival of the newborn during the first few months following birth. In an experimental study, the effect of dietary ALA deficiency on reproduction and postnatal growth in rats was studied during four successive generations. Female rats received either sunflower or soya oils (soya, a more plentiful ALA source). In fact, the sunflower oil supplied 22 times less ALA than the soya diet. While the ALA-deficient diet did not impair fecundity, fertility, pup birth weight or pup growth during suckling, this deficiency did cause abnormally high rates of perinatal mortality from birth to postpartum day three. The Doctor's Prescription Supplemental intake of omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy is clearly important. "For at least six months before conception, both the woman and the man should choose foods that supply an abundance of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, in the form of foods from temperate and cold climates," say Rudin and Felix. "This includes fish, such as salmon and bluefish; nuts, such as walnuts; grains, such as winter wheat; and oils, such as flaxseed." Flaxseed is the richest source of omega-3 fatty acids. We also urge women of childbearing age to supplement their diets with oceanic-derived omega-3 fatty acids. But, we urge women of childbearing age to avoid fish oil capsules and seafood that could be polluted with industrial chemicals or pesticides. Thus, women should avoid excess intake of tuna; although a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, tuna tends to accumulate methylmercury, a potential fetal toxin. Swordfish tends to accumulate PCBs and methylmercury. And, with all due respect to Rudin and Felix, their recommendation for consuming bluefish is a poor one, since this species, found along the East Coast, is one of the most contaminated commercially available fishes. Best choices would be Pacific salmon (preferably wild harvested) once or twice a week, with tuna limited to once weekly. In summary, be sure to consume one to three tablespoons daily of flaxseed oil and one to two servings of omega-3 fatty acid-rich seafood weekly or their equivalent in the form of a dietary supplement.  How to Find the Best Organic Flax Oil
Be sure the company that produces your flax is M.A.D. about fresh flax oil. Here's what to look for when it comes to being M.A.D. about fresh flax: This service is called Fresh ExPress and it guarantees you the absolute freshest flax oil anywhere. You will find this type of extremely high-quality flax oil in the refrigerator sections of natural health centers nationwide. References: 1. Harrison, S., et al. Perinatal omega-3 fatty acid deficiency affects blood pressure later in life. Nature Medicine, 2001; 7(3):258-259. 2. footnote* Rudin, D. & Felix, C. Omega-3 Oils: A Practical Guide. Garden City Park, NY: Avery Publishing Group, 1996. 3. Galli, C., et al. Effects of dietary fatty acids on the fatty acid composition of brain ethanolamine phosphoglyceride. Biochemica et Biophysica Acta, 1971;248:449. 4. Billeaud C, et al. Effects of preterm infant formula supplementation with alpha-linolenic acid with a linoleate/alpha-linolenate ratio of 6: a multicentric study. Eur J Clin Nutr, 1997;51(8):520-526. |