Sophisticated analyses of two clinical trials — one in the U.S. and the other in the Australia — suggest that thousands of early preterm births — those at or before 34 weeks’ gestation — could be prevented if pregnant women took daily docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplements.
The randomized controlled trials in which pregnant women took daily DHA supplements independently found statistically significant reductions in early preterm birth. The statistical model examined low-, moderate- and high-risk births from mothers supplemented with DHA during pregnancy as compared to placebo controls. The researchers estimated that more than 106,000 high-risk early preterm births could be avoided in the U.S. and about 1,100 could be prevented in Australia each year if pregnant women took daily supplements of the omega fatty acid.
