Having looked at the relationship between the future mother’s consumption of seafood and the ability of a child under 8 years of age to hold attention, a team of scientists from ISGlobal University in Barcelona came to the conclusion that squids, octopuses, shrimps and mussels should be on the plate.
Of course, the nutrition system during pregnancy should be formed together with the doctor. So rely in this sense only on articles from the Internet is not worth it.
On the other hand, some points do not cause experts any doubt. And the presence in the diet of a pregnant woman of fish and seafood is one of them.
Moreover, as shown by an analysis of data published by the International Journal of Epidemiology, it is important to use them in the early stages.
The study involved 1641 mother-child pairs from the Spanish project “Environment and Childhood,” designed to find out how external factors affect children’s health. During pregnancy, mothers constantly filled out questionnaires on the subject of nutrition, physical activity and other features of the regimen, and children, reaching the age of eight, underwent a neuropsychological computer test aimed at assessing the attention function.
“Seafood consumption during the first trimester had a significant impact on children’s ability to hold attention. But this did not happen with the consumption of seafood and fish in late pregnancy, probably because some of the processes of development of the nervous system were already completed, ”the authors write.
But why seafood?
The secret is in the polyunsaturated fatty acids DHA and EPA, which are involved in the neurological development of the fetus and whose main source is seafood. Since these nutrients are involved in determining the structure and function of a child’s brain, their deficiency is critical in the long run.
Scientists also focused on attention for a reason: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is often diagnosed in children today. And although more research is needed to state this, seafood at the beginning of pregnancy can be one way to reduce risks.
