Fiskeolietilskud og graviditetsvarighed. En randomiseret kontrolleret undersøgelse.:[Fish oil supplementation and duration of pregnancy. A randomized controlled trial}

• Main Authors: Olsen, S.F., Søorensen, J.D., Secher, N.J., Hedegaard, M., Henriksen, T.B., Hansen, Harald S., Grant, A.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 1994
• Subjects: Faroes
• Online Access: https://curis.ku.dk/portal/da/publications/fiskeolietilskud-og-graviditetsvarighed-en-randomiseret-kontrolleret-undersoegelse(652ee1e1-80bb-4462-b88e-637299ddb4c9).html; http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0028781507&partnerID=8YFLogxK

It was hypothesised from previous observational studies in the Faroes and Denmark that dietary marine n-3 fatty acids would prolong the duration of pregnancy and thereby increase the birth weight, by influencing the production of prostaglandins involved in the process of parturition. Five hundred and thirty-three healthy Danish women were randomly assigned in the 30th week of pregnancy to fish oil (2.7 g n-3 fatty acids (4 1-g capsules Pikasol oil) per day), olive oil (4 1-g capsules per day) or no oil supplementation. The three groups differed in mean gestational age at birth (ANOVA, p = 0.006), with the fish oil group ranking highest and the olive oil group lowest. Babies born to women allocated fish oil had on average 4.0 (95% confidence interval 1.5;6.4) days higher gestational age and 107 (95% confidence interval 1;214) g higher weight at birth than babies born to women allocated olive oil; the difference in gestational age depended on the level of fish intake at enrollment, with a low fish intake enhancing the difference. Fish oil supplementation in the third trimester seems to prolong gestation while allowing continued growth of the foetus; this effect seems to explain the difference between the Faroes and Denmark in pregnancy duration.