University of Kansas
School of Allied Health

A Brain Boost for Babies

Salmon and other seafood are the best dietary sources of docosahexaeonic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid found in high concentrations in the brain and retina. There is an increasing amount of evidence that DHA has important health benefits for fetuses and infants, said Susan Carlson, PhD. Carlson is the AJ Rice Professor of Nutrition in the Department of Dietetics and Nutrition at the University of Kansas's School of Allied Health. Based on the results of clinical trials that showed higher visual acuity in infants who received DHA-containing formulas, DHA was first added to infant formulas in the United States beginning in 2002. Due to a low intake of seafood, American women typically have low levels of DHA in their diet. This limits the amount of DHA they can transfer to their fetus in utero and to their infant through breast milk.

Jeff Radel, PhD (left) and Susan Carlson, PhD

Eager to learn more about the prenatal role of this nutrient, Carlson and an interdisciplinary team of researchers are currently engaged in an experimental trial designed to determine if there are cognitive benefits of DHA intake during intrauterine life.

The five-year, National Institutes of Health-funded study, which launched in 2006, will test the hypothesis that increased intrauterine exposure to DHA will improve attention and learning, lower distractibility and increase visual acuity during infancy and in the toddler years.

During the study, 350 pregnant women will be randomized to receive 600 milligrams of DHA a day until they deliver their babies, with approximately half receiving capsules containing ordinary salad oil without DHA. The infants will then be followed until they are 18 months old. During the test period, babies will engage in age-appropriate tasks to measure their visual acuity and early measures of attention and learning associate with later cognitive function.

Jeff Radel, PhD, associate professor in the University of Kansas Department of Occupational Therapy Education, is also part of the interdisciplinary research team. In particular, Radel is intrigued by DHA's role in improving vision. Currently, Radel is conducting animal studies that investigate the potential of DHA to counter growth of excess blood vessels in the retinas of newborns.

In related work, Radel and Carlson have joined together to study the role DHA plays in causing and treating visual processing problems.

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