Healthy diet during pregnancy lowers childhood autism risk

A new prospective study published in JAMA Network Open investigates the impact of pregnancy eating habits on the risk of childhood autism. Study: Healthy Prenatal Dietary Pattern and Offspring Autism . Image Credit: Pixel-Shot / Shutterstock.

com The prenatal diet and fetal health About 1-2% of the general population is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which is primarily characterized by difficulties in social communication, as well as restricted, repetitive behavior and interests. These symptoms may be present together or alone. Dietary patterns during pregnancy significantly impact the growing fetus.

Nevertheless, the role of dietary habits during pregnancy on the risk of autism has not been evaluated, with most studies focusing on one or more specific nutrients or foods such as vitamin D, multivitamins, folic acid, or fish intake. Importantly, the interactions of nutritional components often have synergistic or detrimental effects on health outcomes. About the study The current study obtained data from the Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) and Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) conducted in Norway and Southwest England, respectively.

Study participants were recruited between 2002-2008 and 1990-1992 for the MoBa and ALSPAC cohorts, respectively, which comprised 84,548 and 11,760 pregnant women, respectively. All study participants had singleton pregnancies, and their food habits were assessed using food frequency ques.