What are DHA and ARA?
DHA is the scientific shorthand for docosahexaenoic acid, an abundant fat in the eye and the brain. Over the years, medical researchers have recognized the importance of this nutrient and its potential to positively influence brain function, as well as vision development.
ARA, or arachidonic acid, is a fatty acid found in cells throughout the body, including the brain and retina. It has long been recognized to play a key role in nutrition, supporting the growth of organs and tissues. Together with DHA, it is important for brain, neural, and eye development in infants.
Your baby receives DHA and ARA from you during pregnancy.
These nutrients are transferred from your blood to your baby through the placenta. You receive them directly from certain foods you eat, such as meat, eggs, and fish. In addition, your body may make DHA and ARA from other fatty acids that you get in your diet.
In the last trimester of your pregnancy, your baby's brain increases notably in size and weight. During this time, there is a significant buildup of DHA in your baby's brain tissue.
DHA and ARA are present in breast milk.
The rapid development of your baby's brain will continue for about two years after his birth. Vision will also rapidly progress. To support this ongoing development, DHA and ARA are still important.
If you choose to breastfeed, your baby will continue to receive DHA and ARA from your breast milk. These nutrients will come to you from the foods you eat, as well as from what you make in your body, as they did when you were pregnant.
What about infant formulas?
Before 2002, no infant formula available in the US included DHA and ARA. After years of studies, the FDA recognized specific sources of these fatty acids for use in infant formulas. And Mead Johnson was the first company in the US to make available a formula that includes these nutrients.
Does this matter?
Some studies have found that when DHA and ARA are added to formula in a balanced manner, there is a positive impact on visual acuity and on measures of mental development. Other studies have found no functional benefits. The differences may be because these studies used various levels of DHA and ARA, and some studies employed tests that were less sensitive in detecting differences in visual function, which may have affected the study conclusions. Most importantly, no study that included both DHA and ARA demonstrated any negative effects.
