Fish oil supplementation during late pregnancy does not influence plasma lipids or lipoprotein levels in young adult offspring

Nutritional influences on cardiovascular disease operate throughout life. Studies in both experimental animals and humans have suggested that changes in the peri- and early post-natal nutrition can affect the development of the various components of the metabolic syndrome in adult life. This has lead to the hypothesis that n-3 fatty acid supplementation in pregnancy may have a beneficial effect on lipid profile in the offspring. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of supplementation with n-3 fatty acids during the third trimester of pregnancy on lipids and lipoproteins in the 19-year-old offspring. The study was based on the follow-up of a randomized controlled trial from 1990 where 533 pregnant women were randomized to fish oil (n = 266), olive oil (n = 136) or no oil (n = 131). In 2009, the offspring were invited to a physical examination including blood sampling. A total of 243 of the offspring participated. Lipid values did not differ between the fish oil and olive oil groups. The relative adjusted difference (95% confidence intervals) in lipid concentrations was -3% (-11; 7) for LDL cholesterol, 3% (-3; 10) for HDL cholesterol, -1% (-6; 5) for total cholesterol,-4% (-16; 10) for TAG concentrations, 2%(-2; 7) for apolipoprotein A1, -1% (-9; 7) for apolipoprotein B and 3% (-7; 15) in relative abundance of small dense LDL. In conclusion, there was no effect of fish oil supplementation during the third trimester of pregnancy on offspring plasma lipids and lipoproteins in adolescence.