As a mother of a baby, is it possible to get too much DHA?

Dear JH,

The average intake of DHA in the diet in North American women is approximately only 80 mg per day-reflective of one fish serving every 12 days on average. In contrast, the corresponding intakes of DHA during pregnancy and lactation in Japanese women are several-fold higher ranging form 500-800 mg DHA/day. A nutrition committee struck under the auspices of the European Union have recently recommended a minimum intake of 200 mg of DHA per day during pregnancy and an expert workshop held at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland in 1999 recommended the minimum intake of 300mg of DHA per day during pregnancy and lactation on order to provide DHA for the infant in the womb during pregnancy and to ensure an adequate supply of DHA in breast milk during lactation.

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