Nov 29 2010

Omega-3s Aid Babies Vision and Brain Development

Published by under Children,Nutrition,Supplements

image via nassaucountyny.gov

The European Commission is standing behind the claims that omega-3s help infants’ brain and vision development. The claims relate to both intake by the mother during pregnancy and lactation as well as directly by the baby.

The statements relate to specific compounds found in the fatty acids:

  • ALA contributes to the brain development of children
  • DHA has a structural and functional role in the retina and DHA intake contributes to the visual development of infants up to 12 months of age
  • DHA has a structural and functional role in the retina and maternal DHA intake contributes to the normal development of the eye of the foetus and breastfed infants
  • DHA has a structural and functional role in the brain and maternal DHA intake contributes to the normal brain development of the foetus and breastfed infants

Source: http://www.nutraingredients.com/Regulation/EC-to-confirm-infant-and-child-omega-3-claims

Not all fish oil is created equal, so consider your choices and be sure to go with a quality product.  The Natural Eye Care Vision Store has many products you can trust.

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Aug 20 2010

Infants Respond to Eye Contact

Published by under Children

In a study of the brains of infants in response to various stimuli, it was found that babies experience increased brain activity when making eye contact with an adult. The results, published in Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, help scientist understand more development of social perception and suggest that a part of the brain is specifically programmed to process eye gaze even at a very early age.

Researchers measured “increased early evoked gamma activity at occipital channels indicating enhanced neural processing during the earliest steps of face encoding” when babies looked at pictures of women whose gazes were directed at them.  Pictures of women with their faces tilted downward or who were looking away from the viewer did not elicit the same response, “confirming that the gamma band oscillations observed in response to gaze direction are specific to upright faces.”

So, look deep into those baby blues and help the development of next baby you meet!

Source: Medscape Today

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