The Importance of DHA & ARA in Infant Development

DHA is important for healthy visual and mental development throughout infancy. Studies with both preterm and term infants suggest that adequate DHA nutrition, provided through either breastmilk or DHA-fortified formula, is associated with optimal mental and visual development and function.

  • Major brain growth occurs during the second trimester of pregnancy and throughout the first two years of life. During these times, the infant has the greatest need for DHA.
  • Developing infants cannot efficiently produce their own DHA.
  • Developing infants must obtain DHA through the placenta during pregnancy and from breast milk after birth. After birth, it has been shown that an infant’s blood DHA level drops dramatically if the child does not receive this fatty acid through breast milk or supplemented formula.
  • Naturally found in breast milk, DHA was cited as the likely component influencing the significantly higher cognitive outcomes through the first 18-years of life for breast-fed infants (as compared to non-DHA supplemented formula-fed infants).
  • DHA and ARA supplemented infant formula was shown to be a good source of these nutrients for formula-fed babies and has been recommended for inclusion in infant formulas by several scientific bodies worldwide.
Full Term Infants
  • Infants who were fed formula supplemented with DHA and ARA at recommended levels demonstrated improved mental development and scored 7 points higher on the Bayley Mental Development Index (MDI).
  • Infants who were breastfed and then weaned to formula supplemented with DHA and ARA demonstrated more mature visual acuity than those breast-fed infants weaned to non-supplemented formula.
  • DHA supplemented infants exhibited better visual acuity than that of non-supplemented infants (equivalent to one line on the eye chart), and similar to that of breast-fed infants.
  • Infants fed formula supplemented with DHA and ARA had significantly lower blood pressure compared to infants fed non-supplemented formula, and similar to that of breast-fed infants. Because blood pressure tends to track from childhood into adult life, it has been suggested that early intake of DHA and ARA may support cardiovascular health later in life.
  • Some studies have failed to report similar effects of DHA and ARA supplementation on infant visual and mental development, but these studies typically involved supplemented infant formulas with lower levels of DHA and ARA.
Preterm or Near-term Infants

Although a developing fetus requires DHA and ARA throughout pregnancy, these vital nutrients are especially important during the third trimester. These last few months are when the most significant neurological, visual and nervous system development occurs, making the fatty acids transferred to the fetus through the placenta particularly critical.

  • Preterm babies have decreased stores of DHA and ARA, due to their shortened time in utero.
  • Due to the rapid development of their brains and eyes and rapid physical growth rates, preterm babies have heightened demands for DHA and ARA.
  • In addition, premature infants have been shown to be at greater risk for neurological deficits, such as learning disabilities, social/behavioral problems and lower intelligence scores. And because they have less developed enzyme systems, their ability to efficiently produce DHA and ARA from precursor fatty acids is limited.
  • Three large, multi-center studies have shown that preterm infants fed formula supplemented with DHA and ARA achieved normal growth in terms of weight, length and head circumference.
  • One study also showed that preterm infants fed DHA and ARA supplemented formula demonstrated improved visual and mental development when compared to the infants fed non supplemented formula.