Fish Oil Does Not Benefit Baby's Cognition or Mom's Depression

Consumption of fish oil during pregnancy does not benefit babies’ cognitive development or mothers’ mood, according to a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Pregnant women who consumed 800 mg of a DHA-rich fish oil supplement each day during pregnancy showed no benefits for depression, and their babies did not differ cognitively from children born from women who consumed a vegetable oil (rapeseed, sunflower, and palm) supplement. A team of researchers in Australia evaluated depression in 2,320 women six months postpartum and cognitive scores including memory, problem solving, and language for 694 children at 18 months.