Research Summary Archives

Persistent worries about the potential dangers from consuming fish and the methylmercury they contain continue to frighten women away from eating fish during pregnancy, especially in the U.S. Mercury is present in nearly all seafood in the form of methylmercury. Seafood consumption is already very l...

Some women develop depressive symptoms during or after childbirth, but it is unclear why some women do and others do not. A history of depressive illness and difficult socioeconomic conditions increase the risk of developing this condition, but other factors, including nutrition may contribute as we...

Depressive illness during and after pregnancy affects from 10% to 40% of women worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. The occurrence of this burdensome condition is higher in less developed countries where treatment may be limited and difficult living conditions complicate the situat...

If you pause to think about it, the ability of the eye to coordinate its visual responses to different types of inputs is quite remarkable. Besides responding to light with visual images, the eye responds to sound signals by turning the eye and head toward the direction of the sound. It responds to ...

There is a small, but growing, literature on the relationship between long-chain omega-3 PUFA (n-3 LC-PUFA) status at birth and later child development, cognition and behavior. Do the observations reported in the first year of life extend into later childhood? Do relationships appear later that were...

It is often noted that the prevalence of atopic diseases has been increasing around the world for the past several decades. These conditions have been associated with Western lifestyles and diets, as well as environmental and genetic factors. Preterm delivery also increases the risk of atopic (IgE-a...

The literature on the relationships between dietary fatty acids and the risk of allergy, especially in infants at high risk of developing eczema, asthma or allergic rhinitis, is fraught with inconsistencies. Omega-6 (n-6) and omega-3 (n-3) PUFAs have been associated with increased or reduced risk of...

One of the conditions that preterm infants risk is abnormal retinal development (retinopathy). The chances are greater in infants weighing less than 1,250 grams (2 lb 12 oz) at birth. This disorder results from the abnormal development of blood vessels in the retina. Blood vessel growth requires lon...

Preterm Infants Given Fish Oil Emulsions May Have Less Retinopathy of Prematurity Preterm infants born before 36 weeks’ gestation or those born weighing less than 1,250 grams are at high risk of mortality and morbidity, with risk increasing as gestational age decreases. Recently published finding...

It is well known that infants born before term have a greater likelihood of developing illnesses and developing more slowly; the earlier the birth, the greater the health risks. There is growing evidence that preterm infants provided with long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) from breast ...