A suite of six newly published reviews from the Texas A&M Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Evidence Center found that seafood intake during pregnancy and childhood is likely associated with beneficial neurocognitive development outcomes in children.
The publications, a suite of systematic and scoping reviews of existing research, appear in the journalsAdvances in Nutrition and Environmental Research. They show that the developmental benefits of nutrient-rich seafood may outweigh possible harms – like low birthweight or motor development issues – from potential exposure to contaminants in seafood including lead and mercury.
“Investigating growth and developmental outcomes related to seafood intake is challenging because seafood can contribute both essential nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids, for example, as well as hazardous contaminants like mercury or lead,” said Maureen Spill, Ph.D., associate director of the Evidence Center and a researcher in the review suite.
The reviews offer insights into the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine’s initiative to provide an updated, holistic understanding of how seafood consumption affects child growth and development.
Evidence Center seafood review publications
The studies included in the six-review suite are:
- Seafood during pregnancy and lactation and child neurocognitive development: A systematic review
- Seafood and Neurocognitive Development in Children: A Systematic Review
- Seafood Toxicant Exposure During Pregnancy, Lactation and Childhood and Child Outcomes: A Scoping Review
- Associations Between Maternal Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) Exposure from Seafood Consumption during Pregnancy and Lactation and Child Growth: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
- Association between Maternal Lead Exposure from Seafood Consumption and Neurodevelopment: A Systematic Review
- Mercury exposure and childhood outcomes: An overview of systematic reviews
The Evidence Center team
In addition to Spill, Evidence Center researchers who led the reviews included Lauren O’Connor, Ph.D., nutrition and health program lead; Rupal Trivedi, Ph.D., registered dietitian nutritionist and associate research scientist; Arin Balalian, DrPH, M.D., research scientist; and Amanda MacFarlane, Ph.D., former Evidence Center director, current research scientist at Health Canada.
