Mothers are very concerned about DHA

DHA, the full name of docosahexaenoic acid, is a fatty acid that is necessary for the human body but cannot be synthesized by the body and can only be ingested through food.

It is very important to human health. It can promote brain cell development, improve cardiovascular and cerebrovascular functions, lower blood lipids, anti-inflammatory effects, anti-cancer effects, etc.

Is it necessary to supplement DHA during pregnancy? 5 benefits of DHA that not only pregnant mothers should know!

The reason why DHA can promote the development of brain cells is that DHA is an important component of the brain and retina.algal oil powder manufacturer It is a major element for the growth and maintenance of brain cells. Its content is as high as 20% in the human cerebral cortex and as high as 50% in the retina of the eye. %.

Therefore, adequate DHA is essential for the development of the nervous system and vision of the fetus and infant. For this reason,algae oil supplement many countries recommend adequate daily intake of DHA for pregnant women, lactating women, and infants.

The Nutrition Society recommends:

Pregnant women and nursing mothers should consume no less than 200mg of DHA daily, and the appropriate DHA intake for infants and young children aged 0-36 months is 100mg.

Pregnant women and nursing mothers are recommended to increase their DHA intake by eating 2 to 3 fish meals per week, with more than one meal containing fatty seafood, and eating 1 egg per day.

If the diet cannot meet the recommended intake of DHA, the dietary structure should be adjusted individually;ara oil if the recommended intake cannot be reached after adjusting the dietary structure, DHA supplements can be used.

DHA for babies aged 0-36 months comes from breast milk. Breastfeeding is advocated and encouraged. Full-term infants who are exclusively breastfed do not need additional DHA supplements.

When breastfeeding is impossible or breast milk is insufficient, formula powder containing DHA can be used, where the DHA content should be 0.2% to 0.5% of total fatty acids. In addition, infants and young children over 7 months old can also gradually obtain DHA from food sources by increasing complementary foods.

However, there are still many pregnant mothers who cannot guarantee fish twice a week due to various reasons, so they come to consult how to choose DHA supplements: algae oil or fish oil? What brand is good?

There are currently two main sources of DHA supplements: seaweed and deep-sea fish.

Deep sea fish oil is an important source of DHA. Fish oil not only contains DHA, but also contains EPA, another important member of the n-3 series of fatty acids.

Another important source of DHA is algae oil, which does not contain EPA.

In fact, the reason why many deep-sea fish have DHA is because it remains in the body after eating seaweed. Compared with fish oil DHA, algae oil does not contain EPA and is more suitable for infants and young children.

Pregnant women can eat either of these two sources, but fish oil DHA is more recommended; infants and young children are recommended to eat algae oil DHA.

For pregnant and lactating mothers, you don’t have to worry about the source of DHA supplements. What you should be more concerned about is which form of DHA.

Whether it is fish oil or algae oil, most of the common DHA currently on the market is ethyl ester DHA (triglyceride type naturally occurring in fish). This form of DHA is difficult to digest and absorb, with an absorption rate of only 21%.

How to distinguish between triglyceride type DHA and ethyl ester type DHA?

I have researched this issue for a long time and looked at many DHA supplement products. Although it is still not very clear, let me summarize a few points for you:

Look at the product description. If it is a triglyceride-based DHA supplement, there will be clear instructions, such as this:

Looking at the price, the triglyceride type DHA will be more expensive because the extraction process is more cumbersome; while the ethyl ester type is lower in cost.

Pregnant and lactating mothers can take DHA supplements if they can, because the DHA in fish is a natural glyceride type, which is easy to digest and absorb! Eating fish can not only obtain DHA but also protein.