Eating Fish Increases Child's IQ

Posted by Brenda Lane Feb 17, 2007

Despite the 2001 and 2004 EPA restrictions on consumption of seafood and fish during pregnancy, researchers from the University of Bristol have found instead that eating larger amounts of seafood during pregnancy may benefit the child's neurological functioning.

Women have been cautioned to not eat more than 2 servings of fish due to the amounts of mercury found in the larger predator fish. While experts do agree that certain fishes such as shark, tilefish, swordfish and king mackerel should not be eaten because of their high levels of mercury, this new research does question restricting other fish and seafood from the mother's diet.

In 1991, Bristol researchers began a long-term study (published in the Lancet) of over 14,000 women and 13,000 of their children in the UK to measure the affects of seafood consumption during the third trimester. The children were given intelligence tests at the age of 8. Children whose mothers consumed the most fish had significantly higher verbal IQ scores and fewer behavioral problems that the children whose mothers ate only the amount recommended by the EPA.

How much fish are you eating? It sounds like increasing your fish consumption of some of the safer fish may benefit, rather than harm your baby. For a list of safe fishes, see Foods to Avoid during Pregnancy.

Brenda