title: The role of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) in growth and development.
abstract: It is debatable whether supplementation of infant formula with LCPUFA has an effect on infant growth and development. Up till now, there is little evidence of a negative effect on infant growth. A review of randomized controlled trials in term infants revealed that LCPUFA, in particularly supplementation with > or = 0.30% DHA, seems to have a beneficial effect on neurodevelopmental outcome up to 4 months of age. The studies could not demonstrate a consistent positive effect beyond that age. However, in the majority of studies neurodevelopmental outcome was assessed between 6 to 24 months, i.e. at an age where there is a 'latency' in the expression of minor neurological dysfunction. Thus it is possible that LCPUFA might have a long lasting beneficial effect on neurodevelopmental outcome at school-age and beyond. This hypothesis urgently needs testing.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Neurology-Developmental Neurology, University Hospital Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Mijna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hadders-Algra
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007227:Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D007231:Infant, Newborn / Q000254:growth & development*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
chemical_list: D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated