A new study led by Southern Catalonia Biomedical Research Institute – IRB CatSud in collaboration with the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) -a centre supported by the ”la Caixa” Foundation- and the California Walnut Commission argues that what a woman eats during pregnancy can influence the brain development of her children for many years. The study, published in the European Journal of Epidemiology, has analysed data from 716 mother and son couples from Asturias, Guipuzcoa, Sabadell and Valencia. All this information has been extracted from the IMMA project, which is a study on childhood and the environment. In this case, biological signals have been sought in umbilical cord plasma.
In fact, the levels of omega-3 fatty acids present in the umbilical cord are associated with the cognitive trajectory from childhood to adolescence and show differentiated association patterns for attention, working memory and fluid intelligence from 5 to 15 years. “The type of prenatal feeding leaves a lasting mark on the cognitive trajectory of offspring”, says the principal investigator of the study, Jordi Julvez, at the head of the Clinical and Epidemiological Neuroscience (NeuroÈpia) group at IRB CatSud and researcher at ISGlobal.
The work highlights, however, that not all omega-3s act in the same way. As for the so-called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), this nutrient is mainly found in fish, with a special emphasis on small and medium blue fish such as sardine, mackerel or salmon, and also in seafood. DHA is essential for the brain to develop properly, as it is part of the structure of neurons. Children who received higher levels during pregnancy show a better capacity for attention, memory and reasoning throughout development up to 15 years. These positive effects can already be seen during childhood and are maintained until adolescence. While the benefit in working memory stands out especially in early childhood, the relationship with attention and fluid intelligence is progressively strengthened as children approach adolescence.
On the other hand, another type of omega-3 is alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), present in foods of plant origin, mainly in nuts, such as walnuts; seeds, such as flax or xia; and certain vegetable oils. Higher ALA levels are associated with better attention capacity in offspring. Children who registered higher levels showed greater ease of concentrating and solving new problems or situations, especially at an early age (5-7 years). Although these advantages tend to be reduced with age, a slight progressive improvement in working memory was also detected in later stages, that is, in the ability to keep information active in the mind and use it immediately.
In contrast to the above, Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), which is also found in fish and seafood, was not associated with any of the cognitive abilities evaluated in the children participating in the study.
The importance of the Mediterranean diet as a guide
In a practical way, the first author of the study, Ariadna Pinar-Martí, recalls that the human organism is not able to produce the ALA alone and that it only transforms a small part of it into other beneficial omega-3s. Therefore, it stresses that following a rich and balanced diet -such as the pattern followed by the Mediterranean diet, which adequately combines fish, nuts and quality oils – is the best way to guarantee an optimal contribution of these essential nutrients during gestation.
The work has been carried out with the participation of researchers from other institutions, such as the Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), the Universitat de Barcelona (UB) and the Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Fisiopatología de la Obesidad y Nutrición (CIBEROBN) and the Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP) of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII).
Bibliographic reference
Pinar-Martí, A., Ayala-Aldana, N., Bernardo-Castro, S. et al. Omega-3 cord plasma proportions and cognitive function trajectories from 5 to 15 years of age: a population-based cohort study. Eur J Epidemiol (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10654-026-01461-8
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