Did you know that nutrition can influence up to 40% of peak bone mass? Calcium is a well known nutrient needed in pregnancy for fetal bone development and growth, but a new study by Venter et al. shows that iron and omega-3 fatty acids support bone development as well. They had previously seen impaired bone development in the offspring of rats experiencing pre- and postnatal iron and omega-3 fatty acid deficiency. Their study supplemented iron and docosahexaenoic (DHA)+eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) individually and in combination to rats in the second half of their pregnancy and lactation having consumed a preconceptual iron- and omega-3 fatty acid-deficient diet. They found the offspring whose mothers received iron and omega-3 supplementation despite a deficient diet had higher spine and femur density, stiffness, and strength than offspring from the deficient diet alone and these measures were similar to those that didn’t experience iron and omega-3 fatty acid deficiency at all.
To prevent the increased risk of developing osteoporosis later in the offspring’s life, this study suggests that both iron and DHA/EPA may be needed to be supplemented when not sufficiently present in diet during pregnancy.
Read the article here!
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