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Updated: Nov 12, 2025
Author Spotlight: Studying the Impact of Maternal Dietary Deficiencies on Long-Term Offspring Health Outcomes
Published on: June 28, 2024
Maternal polyunsaturated fatty acids during pregnancy and offspring brain development in childhood
Runyu Zou1,2, Hanan El Marroun1,3,4, Trudy Voortman5
1Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Erasmus MC University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Insights
Maternal intake of omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy is linked to larger child brain volumes. Insufficient omega-3 levels were associated with reduced brain development in children, while omega-6 levels showed no effect on brain morphology.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Emerging evidence links maternal polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) levels during pregnancy to child cognitive and neuropsychiatric outcomes.
- The specific impact of prenatal maternal PUFAs on child brain development remains largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between maternal PUFA status during pregnancy and child brain morphology.
- To examine volumetric and white matter microstructure measures in relation to maternal PUFA levels.
Main Methods:
- Prospective population-based study including 1553 mother-child dyads.
- Maternal plasma PUFAs assessed in mid-pregnancy.
- Child brain morphology (volumes, white matter microstructure) measured via MRI at 9-11 years.
Main Results:
- Maternal omega-3 (ω-3) long-chain PUFA (LC-PUFA) concentrations showed an inverted U-shaped relation with child gray and white matter volumes.
- Lower maternal ω-3 PUFA levels were associated with reduced child brain volume.
- Maternal omega-6 (ω-6) LC-PUFA concentrations did not predict brain volumetric differences.
Conclusions:
- Adequate maternal ω-3 PUFAs during pregnancy may support optimal long-term child brain development.
- Prenatal exposure to lower ω-3 PUFA concentrations is linked to smaller brain volumes in childhood.
- Maternal ω-6 LC-PUFAs were not found to be related to child brain morphology.
Background:
Emerging evidence suggests an association of maternal PUFA concentrations during pregnancy with child cognitive and neuropsychiatric outcomes such as intelligence and autistic traits. However, little is known about prenatal maternal PUFAs in relation to child brain development, which may underlie these associations.
Objectives:
We aimed to investigate the association of maternal PUFA status during pregnancy with child brain morphology, including volumetric and white matter microstructure measures.
Methods:
This study was embedded in a prospective population-based study. In total, 1553 mother-child dyads of Dutch origin were included. Maternal plasma glycerophospholipid PUFAs were assessed in midpregnancy. Child brain morphologic outcomes, including total gray and white matter volumes, as well as white matter microstructure quantified by global fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity, were measured using MRI (including diffusion tensor imaging) at age 9-11 y.
Results:
Maternal ω-3 (n-3) long-chain PUFA (LC-PUFA) concentrations during pregnancy had an inverted U-shaped relation with child total gray volume (linear term: β: 16.7; 95% CI: 2.0, 31.5; quadratic term: β: -1.1; 95% CI: -2.1, -0.07) and total white matter volume (linear term: β: 15.7; 95% CI: 3.6, 27.8; quadratic term: β: -1.0; 95% CI: -1.8, -0.16). Maternal gestational ω-6 LC-PUFA concentrations did not predict brain volumetric differences in children, albeit the linolenic acid concentration was inversely associated with child total white matter volume. Maternal PUFA status during pregnancy was not related to child white matter microstructure.
Conclusions:
Sufficient maternal ω-3 PUFAs during pregnancy may be related to more optimal child brain development in the long term. In particular, exposure to lower ω-3 PUFA concentrations in fetal life was associated with less brain volume in childhood. Maternal ω-6 LC-PUFAs were not related to child brain morphology.
