Eating a seafood-rich diet during the early stages of pregnancy could help
improve a child’s attention span, a study has suggested.
Researchers at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health analysed the diets
of 1,600 mothers during their pregnancies, whose children’s attention skills
were then tested at the age of eight.
They found children whose mothers had eaten a variety of fish and seafood
during their first trimester – including fatty fish, lean fish, canned tuna and
shellfish – scored well in the tests.
High scores were also attained by children of women with a seafood diet
rich only in fatty fish but those whose mothers only consumed canned tuna or
shellfish scored lower.
The team suggested the test results could be linked to seafood containing
nutrients essential for brain development – which takes place early in
pregnancy – such as polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Lead author Jordi Júlvez said, “The consumption of seafood during the first
trimester of pregnancy had a greater effect on children’s attention capacity
than the consumption of seafood later in pregnancy or at five years of age, by
which time some neurodevelopment processes have already been completed,” .
However, the study acknowledged previous research has reported a link
between the consumption of fish during pregnancy and childhood obesity and
increased blood pressure.
It stated experts believe more research is needed to determine exactly
which species of fish and what quantities may be beneficial to foetal
development.