title: Beneficial effects of a polyunsaturated fatty acid on infant development: evidence from the inuit of arctic Quebec.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine the relation of cord plasma docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) concentration to gestation length, birth size, growth, and infant visual acuity, cognitive, and motor development and the effects on growth and development associated with DHA intake from breast-feeding.
  
  
  METHODS
  DHA, other polyunsaturated fatty acids, and 3 environmental contaminants (polychlorinated biphenyls, mercury, and lead) were assessed in cord plasma and maternal plasma and milk in 109 Inuit infants in Arctic Quebec. Multiple regression was used to examine the relation of cord DHA and DHA from breast-feeding on growth and development at 6 and 11 months, after controlling for contaminant exposure and other potential confounders.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Higher cord DHA concentration was associated with longer gestation, better visual acuity and novelty preference on the Fagan Test at 6 months, and better Bayley Scale mental and psychomotor performance at 11 months. By contrast, DHA from breast-feeding was not related to any indicator of cognitive or motor development in this full-term sample.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The association of higher cord DHA concentration with more optimal visual, cognitive, and motor development is consistent with the need for substantial increases in this critically important fatty acid during the third trimester spurt of synaptogenesis in brain and photoreceptor development.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, Michigan, USA.
authors.forename: Joseph L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Jacobson
authors.forename: Sandra W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Jacobson
authors.forename: Gina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Muckle
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kaplan-Estrin
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ayotte
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dewailly
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001724:Birth Weight; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000097:blood*; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000737:chemistry*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D004930:Inuit; D008297:Male; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000737:chemistry*; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000502:physiology; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011247:Pregnancy; D011336:Probability; D011792:Quebec; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013997:Time Factors; D014792:Visual Acuity / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids