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Erythrocyte docosahexaenoic acid correlates with the visual response of healthy, term infants
M Makrides1, K Simmer, M Goggin
1Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide, South Australia.
Insights
Breastfed infants show better visual acuity and higher docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels than formula-fed infants. Higher DHA correlates with improved visual pathway function in term infants.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Nutritional Science
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Formula-fed preterm infants exhibit lower scores on visual and developmental tests compared to breastfed infants.
- This difference is linked to docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid, present in breast milk but absent in infant formulas.
- The study investigates if DHA status impacts visual pathway neuronal function in healthy, term infants.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the relationship between erythrocyte docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels and visual pathway maturity in term infants.
- To compare visual-evoked potential acuity and DHA status between breastfed and formula-fed term infants.
Main Methods:
- Erythrocyte fatty acid profiles were analyzed in 16 term infants.
- Visual pathway maturity was assessed using visual-evoked potentials.
- Infant diets were categorized as breast milk or infant formula as the primary energy source.
Main Results:
- Healthy, term infants fed breast milk demonstrated superior visual-evoked potential acuity (p < 0.05) compared to formula-fed infants.
- Breastfed infants exhibited significantly higher erythrocyte DHA levels (p < 0.001).
- A positive correlation was observed between erythrocyte DHA levels and visual-evoked potential acuity (p < 0.01).
Conclusions:
- Findings suggest a link between DHA status and visual pathway function in term infants.
- Results indicate a potential need to reassess the dietary fatty acid composition of infant formulas.
- Further research is warranted to understand the long-term implications of DHA on infant neurodevelopment.
Abstract:
Recent studies have reported that formula-fed preterm infants score lower on visual and developmental tests relative to breast-fed preterm infants. This phenomenon has been associated with the presence of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid, in breast milk and its absence from infant formula. To investigate the possibility that DHA status of healthy, term infants is also related to neuronal function of the visual pathway, we studied the erythrocyte fatty acid profiles of 16 infants at 22.3 +/- 3.9 wk of age and related these to maturity of the visual pathway as assessed by visual-evoked potentials. Healthy, term infants fed breast milk had better visual-evoked potential acuity (p < 0.05) and higher DHA levels (p < 0.001) than infants who received infant formula as their major energy source. There was a positive correlation between erythrocyte DHA and visual-evoked potential acuity (p < 0.01). The data are preliminary and the long-term effects as yet unknown. However, our results suggest that there is an urgent need to evaluate the dietary fatty acid supply of formula-fed term infants.