In addition to DHA, this nutrient is also an important component for the baby's brain development.

DHA, known as "brain gold", is very important for the development of the baby's brain and retina. Many parents must have added it to their babies.

In fact, the baby's eye and brain development not only requires DHA, but also a low-key and powerful player 👉ARA (also known as eicosapentaenoic acid, also called arachidonic acid, can also be referred to as AA).

Like DHA, ARA is also a member of the unsaturated fatty acid family. It is also important for infant growth, brain development and vision development, and is one of the important nutrients for normal bone development and metabolism.

According to my country's GB10765-2010 "National Food Safety Standard Infant Formula", if DHA is added to infant formula, at least the same amount of ARA must be added.

In other words, DHA is not "fighting alone" when it comes to the normal development of the baby's eyes and brain.

Why add?

👉DHA is important for children's brain and vision development!!

How to add?

👉Prioritize intake from food

A good choice for getting DHA from food is deep-sea fish and other seafood. According to FDA recommendations, fish should be eaten twice a week.

If the seafood dietary intake is not enough, you can add some DHA to your child, usually in the form of fish oil and algae oil.

💡Tips:

Algal oil has a low risk of heavy metal enrichment, low EPA content, and is not as fishy as fish oil, making it very suitable for supplementation for babies and pregnant women.

Finally, a warm reminder: pay more attention to the diversity of your family's diet and provide your baby with more abundant food. I hope every baby has a healthy and smart little head~

References

[1] Hadley, KB; Ryan, AS; Forsyth, S.; Gautier, S.; Salem, N. The Essentiality of Arachidonic Acid in Infant Development. Nutrients 2016, 8, 216.

[2] Janssen CI, Kiliaan A J. Long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) from genesis to senescence: the influence of LCPUFA on neural development, aging, and neurodegeneration. Prog Lipid Res, 2014, 53: 1-17.

[3] FDA. Advice about Eating Fish For Those Who Might Become or Are Pregnant or Breastfeeding and Children Ages 1 - 11 Years [EB/OL] https://www.fda.gov/food/consumers/advice-about-eating-fish, 2022-06-08/2022-06-14

[4] Thorner, MO; Vance, ML; Hartman, ML; Holl, RW; Evans, WS; Veldhuis, JD; Van Cauter, E.; Copinschi, G.; Bowers, CY Physiological role of somatostatin on growth hormone regulation in humans. Metabolism 1990, 39, 40–42.

[5] Sorndech, W., KN Nakorn, S. Tongta, et al. Isomalto-oligosaccharides: Recent insights in production technology and their use for food and medical applications[J]. LWT, 2018, 9(5): 135-142.