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. 2017 Nov 23:8:241.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00241. eCollection 2017.

Dietary n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Late Pregnancy and Postpartum Depressive Symptom among Japanese Women

Minatsu Kobayashi  1 , Kohei Ogawa  2 , Naho Morisaki  3 , Yukako Tani  4   5 , Reiko Horikawa  6 , Takeo Fujiwara  3   4
Affiliations

Dietary n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Late Pregnancy and Postpartum Depressive Symptom among Japanese Women

Minatsu Kobayashi et al. Front Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Background: The use of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3PUFA) in preventive or therapeutic modalities for postpartum depression, especially long-chain types such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and a docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), is of considerable interest. High n-3PUFA consumption has been reported among pregnant Japanese women. Therefore, analysis of this group could provide important insights into the relationship between postpartum depression and dietary n-3PUFA consumption. To further examine the relationship between the risk of postpartum depression and n-3PUFA consumption, we conducted a prospective hospital-based birth cohort study in Japan.

Design and methods: Our prospective birth cohort study was performed at the National Center for Child Health and Development (NCCHD) in suburban Tokyo, Japan. Dietary n-3PUFA intake during late pregnancy was assessed by a semi-quantitative food questionnaire and participants were categorized by quintile distributions of n-3PUFA intake. A Japanese translation of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale was used to screen women for postpartum depression at 1 month after delivery (967 women) and at 6 months after delivery (710 women). We performed logistic regression analysis to examine the relationship between the risk of postpartum depression and n-3PUFA consumption after adjusting for confounding factors.

Results: Significant associations between EPA, DHA, and n-3PUFA intakes in late pregnancy and postpartum depression at both 1 and 6 months after delivery were not observed.

Conclusion: This prospective study indicated that EPA, DHA, and n-3PUFA intake during late pregnancy was not associated with the risk of postpartum depression.

Keywords: Japanese pregnant women; dietary n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids; docosahexaenoic acid; eicosapentaenoic acid; fish intake; postpartum depression.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Subject flow diagram.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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