French researchers sought to understand the link between eating habits during pregnancy and child development. And the better the first… the better the second!
During pregnancy, the pregnant women are called upon to pay attention to their feed. What they do, moreover, mainly with regard to the foods which are forbidden to them. But if all are informed of the possible food poisoning which can have serious consequences on the baby, few women on the other hand know why it is otherwise in their interest to adopt a healthy and quality food during their pregnancy. The benefit is felt on the development of the child. It is in any case the result of a great study, conducted by the national Elfe cohort and published on October 6, 2022. For twenty years, researchers have followed more than 18,000 children, to better understand in part how loved ones, the environment, living conditions influence the development, the health and socialization of children. More precisely, the team of Blandine de Lauzon-Guillain, director of research at Inrae, looked in detail at the link between maternal diet during pregnancy and child neurodevelopment. Results :
More fish, vegetables and fruit for baby’s sake
Children who received better quality food while still in their mothers’ wombs had better overall development scores, from 1 to 3.5 years, as well as language , at 2 years old, compared to other toddlers. This observation was also visible when future mothers consumed more fruit and vegetables or fish. “Better diet quality during pregnancy is associated with better neurodevelopmentas rated by parents”, emphasizes Blandine de Lauzon-Guillain in her report. Maternal nutrition is therefore not a factor to be neglected when it comes to the good development of the child. “About 10% less risk of presenting clinical neurodevelopmental problems when the pregnant mother’s diet was of good quality”adds the expert.
Be careful with processed foods and deli meats
Conversely, a diet made up of large quantities of cold meats or processed foods would also have an impact on the development of the child, but this time it is pernicious. “High consumption of deli meats during pregnancy was associated with lower child development scores at 1 and 2 years of age” and “High consumption of processed foods is associated with lower child neurodevelopment scores at the age of 1 year only”, says the study. Nevertheless, Please note that the results of the survey do not yet allow a definitive conclusion to be drawn.. “Further studies are needed to confirm the causal nature of the observed associations.” Furthermore, Blandine de Lauzon-Guillain concludes: “Some studies show that deficiencies can induce neurodevelopmental problems. So there are nutrients beneficial for children’s development that could explain a cause and effect relationship, to be verified in future studies“