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A GROUP of nutritionists is urging pregnant women to eat more fish to prevent their children developing brain disorders in later life.
Professor Jack Winkler, director of the Nutrition Policy Unit at London Metropolitan University, who was speaking at a Royal Society of Medicine conference in London said his group believed the benefits of fish oil far outweighed any potential risks.
Two years ago women were advised by the Food Standards Agency to limit their intake of oily fish. But now there is evidence that this advice is leading to an increase in brain disorders and in some children having a low verbal intelligence.
The researchers are expected to ask the Food Standards Agency and the Government's Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition to change that advice.
Professor Winkler said: "The Food Standards Agency issued advice to women and pregnant women about fish in 2004 which was ultra conservative. Since then, there has been research which indicates that women who have eaten more fish than those recommendations suffer no harm but their child's brain performance improved."
He added that the earlier advice had put some women off eating fish altogether, which was wrong. Professor Michael Crawford, director of the Institute of Brain Chemistry and Human Nutrition at London Metropolitan University, said the brain was composed mainly of fat and this meant it needed fatty acids for development.
This latest nutritional advice backs up earlier claims that oily fish such as salmon, sardines, herring and mackerel can help people with serious mental disorders. And, of course, there is now the generally accepted view that fish has major benefits for heart health.
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