Are you missing out on the benefits of fish oil during pregnancy due to fish safety fears?

When you first find out you’re pregnant, you’re usually excited about the new life growing inside you. But quickly, that joy can be replaced by worries, even fears. You wonder about your baby’s health and how you can make it the best it can be.

And you need to choose foods, especially fish, carefully because too much or the wrong kind can harm your baby. But are you missing out on the health benefits of fish oil for your baby out of fear for the safety of fish?

Well, you don’t have to. With omega-3 fatty acid supplements, you can get the benefits of fish oil. And the right, high-quality supplements can have real health benefits for your baby. The most important fatty acid in fish oil supplements is DHA (or docosahexaenoic acid).

Why is DHA important for fetal health? It’s important because studies show that DHA helps develop your unborn baby’s brain, nervous system, and eyes. Adults can get DHA from foods such as eggs, milk, and fish, and this may be the best way during pregnancy.

But what if you have allergies to eggs or milk or don’t like those foods? What if you can eat fish but want to avoid eating too much mercury or other fish hazards during pregnancy? So the best way for your unborn baby to get DHA may be through fish oil pills.

There are several important benefits of taking fish oil supplements during pregnancy. One is the highest birth weight in babies whose mothers take it. In fact, studies show a high correlation between getting enough DHA from omega-3 sources like high-quality fish oil pills and a baby’s head circumference and weight at birth.

In addition, other studies show that, in some cases, getting enough DHA during pregnancy can reduce the chance of repeat preterm births.

Another advantage of DHA supplementation during pregnancy is related to the development of the baby’s brain. The research showed that two-year-olds whose mothers consumed fish oil with high amounts of DHA during pregnancy scored higher on hand-eye coordination tests.

Additional studies found that older children had benefited from DHA intake during pregnancy with higher IQ scores, verbal intelligence, communication, and social skill development. They also had better attention spans.

Visual development, in some studies, also appeared to be better in babies whose mother took a lot of DHA during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. And other research showed that babies whose mothers consumed high enough amounts of DHA during pregnancy had fewer colds.

While nothing guarantees any of these results, if you’re pregnant, you may be able to improve your baby’s health by taking fish oil pills.

But, you can’t just take any fatty acid supplement you can find, and you’re not wasting your health or your baby’s health during pregnancy when you buy them. It is possible to get the benefits of fish oil during pregnancy without worrying about the safety of the fish if you choose the right product. For one, your fish oil supplements should contain the highest amount of DHA available.

On the other hand, to be safe for you to take during pregnancy, your omega-3 fatty acid supplements should also have negligible amounts of toxins like mercury that you’re trying to avoid in fish. Also, to ensure that you and your unborn child get the full benefits of fish oil, they must contain the purest fish oil from the best sources in the world.

And, to avoid stomach upset, among other things, your supplements should be as fresh as possible.

You have to make many decisions about nutrition and maternal health during pregnancy if you want to get the best outcome from your pregnancy. Choosing a fish oil supplement to ensure high-dose, high-quality DHA intake is one of the most important things you’ll ever do. Choose your supplements carefully, and you can improve the overall health of your baby at birth and later in infancy.