TY - JOUR

T1 - Breast milk n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids and blood pressure: an individual participant meta-analysis

AU - van Rossem, Lenie

AU - Smit, Henriette A

AU - Armand, Martine

AU - Bernard, Jonathan Y

AU - Bisgaard, Hans

AU - Bønnelykke, Klaus

AU - Bruun, Signe

AU - Heude, Barbara

AU - Husby, Steffen

AU - Kyhl, Henriette Boye

AU - Michaelsen, Kim F.

AU - Stark, Ken D

AU - Thijs, Carel

AU - Vinding, Rebecca Kofod

AU - Wijga, Alet H

AU - Lauritzen, Lotte

N1 - CURIS 2021 NEXS 077

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - Purpose: It is controversial whether a higher intake of n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC PUFA) through breastfeeding is associated or not to a lower blood pressure (BP) during childhood. We aimed to clarify this point by undertaking a meta-analysis involving the data from seven European birth cohorts.Methods: We searched https://www.birthcohort.net for studies that had collected breast milk samples, and had at least one BP measurement in childhood. Principal investigators were contacted, and all agreed to share data. One additional study was identified by contacts with the principal investigators. For each cohort, we analyzed the association of breast milk n-3 LC PUFAs with systolic and diastolic BP with linear mixed effects models or linear regression, and pooled the estimates with a random effects model. We also investigated age-specific and sex-specific associations.Results: A total of 2188 participants from 7 cohorts were included. Overall, no associations between breast milk n-3 LC PUFAs and BP were observed. In the pooled analysis, each 0.1 wt% increment in breast milk docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) was associated with a 1.19 (95% CI - 3.31, 0.94) mmHg lower systolic BP. Associations were similar for boys and girls and at different ages.Conclusion: In this individual participant meta-analysis, we found no evidence for an association between breast milk n-3 LC PUFAs and BP.

AB - Purpose: It is controversial whether a higher intake of n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC PUFA) through breastfeeding is associated or not to a lower blood pressure (BP) during childhood. We aimed to clarify this point by undertaking a meta-analysis involving the data from seven European birth cohorts.Methods: We searched https://www.birthcohort.net for studies that had collected breast milk samples, and had at least one BP measurement in childhood. Principal investigators were contacted, and all agreed to share data. One additional study was identified by contacts with the principal investigators. For each cohort, we analyzed the association of breast milk n-3 LC PUFAs with systolic and diastolic BP with linear mixed effects models or linear regression, and pooled the estimates with a random effects model. We also investigated age-specific and sex-specific associations.Results: A total of 2188 participants from 7 cohorts were included. Overall, no associations between breast milk n-3 LC PUFAs and BP were observed. In the pooled analysis, each 0.1 wt% increment in breast milk docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) was associated with a 1.19 (95% CI - 3.31, 0.94) mmHg lower systolic BP. Associations were similar for boys and girls and at different ages.Conclusion: In this individual participant meta-analysis, we found no evidence for an association between breast milk n-3 LC PUFAs and BP.

KW - Faculty of Science

KW - Breastfeeding

KW - Blood pressure

KW - Fatty acids

KW - Children

U2 - 10.1007/s00394-020-02310-4

DO - 10.1007/s00394-020-02310-4

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 32564149

VL - 60

SP - 989

EP - 998

JO - European Journal of Nutrition

JF - European Journal of Nutrition

SN - 1436-6207

IS - 2

ER -