A new study has revealed that newborns whose mothers ate fish more than three times a week during pregnancy grew faster in their first two years of life and were more likely to be overweight or obese at 4 and 6 years old than babies born to mothers who ate little to no fish during pregnancy.
The study which was conducted across several countries found the weight-related effects of a mother’s high fish consumption were more pronounced when the offspring was female.
Researchers suggested two explanations for their finding: that the omega-3 fatty acids found plentifully in fish might predispose fetal stem cells to differentiate into fat cells, or that pollutants found in fish disrupt fetal hormones related to metabolism and prompt greater fat storage.
The study observed 26,184 pregnant women and their children, born between 1996 and 2011.
The researchers also monitored the growth patterns and weight status of the children up to the age of 6 years old.
They found that at 4 and 6 years old, children born to women with the highest level of fish consumption during pregnancy were 14 percent and 22 percent more likely to be overweight or obese than were babies born to women who ate the least fish.