Association between maternal erythrocyte PUFAs during pregnancy and neurodevelopment in children at 2 years of age: a birth cohort study.

Abstract

Background

Previous studies on prenatal polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and children's neurodevelopment have shown inconsistent results, and evidence from the Asian population is scarce.

Objective

To investigate the association between maternal erythrocyte PUFAs and neurodevelopment in children in the Chinese population.

Methods

We included 242 mother-child pairs from the Yuexiu birth cohort. The composition of maternal erythrocyte fatty acids during pregnancy was measured by gas chromatography. Each PUFA was divided into 3 tertiles. Neurodevelopment in children was evaluated with the Ages and Stages Questionnaire at 2 years of age, including 5 domains of development: communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving, and personal-social skills.

Results

Maternal eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) [OR (95% CI): 0.34 (0.15, 0.74) for tertile 2, and 0.31 (0.13, 0.70) for tertile 3] was associated with a reduced risk of potential developmental delay in gross motor skills. Conversely, arachidonic acid (AA) [OR (95% CI): 2.54 (1.17, 5.70) for tertile 3] was associated with an increased risk of potential developmental delay in personal-social skills. The ratio of AA/epa [OR (95% CI): 2.64 (1.18, 6.15) for tertile 3] was associated with an increased risk of potential developmental delay in gross motor skills. No significant association was found between other PUFAs and neurodevelopment.

Conclusion

This birth cohort has first shown a beneficial association between maternal epa and gross motor skills of children. Meanwhile, maternal AA and the ratio of AA/epa have negative associations with neurodevelopment in children.