DHA is a brain supplement. If pregnant mothers supplement an appropriate amount of DHA, their babies will grow smarter

Do pregnant women need to supplement DHA?

DHA, commonly known as brain gold, is a main component for the growth and maintenance of nervous system cells. For a long time, most people have supplemented DHA to babies or pregnant women themselves to make babies smarter. The intellectual development of fetuses requires the participation of DHA, especially The improvement of fetal brain neurological development requires optimization of DHA nutritional content.

Regardless of whether you take nutritional supplements containing DHA, you cannot ignore the supplement of DHA. If the demand is average, you can obtain it through your daily diet. There is no need to specifically purchase nutritional supplements containing DHA. If the demand for DHA is relatively large, If the DHA content in your daily diet is low, you must take DHA-containing nutritional supplements. In order to correctly supplement DHA, it is best for pregnant mothers to supplement according to their own conditions under the guidance of a doctor.

When should I start taking DHA? How much do you eat every day?

The golden period for DHA supplementation during pregnancy is generally from 20 weeks of pregnancy to six months postpartum, when the baby's brain development rate and extent reaches 70% of the human brain. This stage is the period when neurons in the fetal brain center divide and mature the fastest, and it is also the period when the demand for DHA is greatest. Note that in the process of brain development, there is only one "golden period". If you miss it, it will be difficult to recover.

The more DHA you consume, the better. We also need to carefully consider the amount of DHA supplemented. Too little DHA supplement is not enough to meet the nutritional needs of the fetus. Too much may also cause overnutrition problems, such as excessive DHA, causing platelet aggregation, decreased immunity, or other problems.

What can pregnant women eat to supplement DHA?

1. Eat more walnuts, peanuts and soybean oil

Pregnant women can also convert a small amount of DHA by eating foods containing α-linolenic acid, such as nuts, walnuts, peanuts, soybean oil, etc. However, the conversion rate of α-linolenic acid into DHA is less than 1%, which is far from meeting the needs of fetal development. Therefore, you need to consider adding additional DHA supplements to your diet.

2. Fish and seafood

Fish and seafood are undoubtedly the best and most recommended sources of DHA. Fish and seafood not only contain DHA, but also provide high-quality protein, vitamin A, iron, zinc, iodine and other nutrients. They are an important part of the dietary structure during pregnancy.

3. Supplement algae oil

Seaweed is the original source of DHA, and deep-sea fish obtain DHA by eating seaweed. DHA algae oil is extracted directly from marine algae, without being passed through the food chain and without heavy metal pollution. DHA algae oil is directly extracted from marine single-cell seaweed. It does not contain EPA and is safe and easy to absorb. Direct supplementation of algae oil is most suitable for pregnant women.

4. Supplement DHA and protein together

Because DHA exists in the brain gold supplement in the form of fat, it needs the help of bile to combine with water and emulsify into an emulsion in the duodenum after eating, so that it can be absorbed by the duodenum and jejunum. However, bile is not continuously discharged into the duodenum 24 hours a day, but is discharged intermittently 11 times, each time for 3 to 5 minutes.

Generally, eating protein-rich foods stimulates the sensory nerves on the gastric mucosa in the stomach. Through the connection of nerve reflex arcs, it causes the gallbladder to contract and discharge bile sweat into the duodenum. Therefore, when pregnant women take "Brain Gold" nutritional supplements containing DHA, they should take them with milk, soy milk, eggs, fish, tofu and other foods, or simply take them with milk or soy milk. In this way, they can be fully absorbed and not DHA will be wasted.