• About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Login
    • ObGFirst
  • Alerts
  • OB
  • 2T US Atlas
  • The Genome
  • GYN
    • GYN
    • Sexual Health
  • Primary Care
  • Your Practice
  • GrandRounds
  • My Bookshelf
  • COVID-19
About Us Contact Us Login ObGFirst
  • Alerts
  • OB
  • 2T US Atlas
  • The Genome
  • GYN
    • GYN
    • Sexual Health
  • Primary Care
  • Your Practice
  • GrandRounds
  • My Bookshelf
  • COVID-19
Grand Rounds

Can Omega-3 Supplements Ameliorate Symptoms of Postpartum Depression?

image_pdfFavoriteLoadingFavorite

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE:

  • Evidence is unclear whether omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3 PUFAs) supplementation may impact prenatal depression
  • Mocking et al. (Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 2020) investigated whether omega-3 PUFAs (such as those found in fish oils) could benefit women with perinatal depression

METHODS:

  • Systematic review and meta-analysis
  • Data sources (through February 18, 2019)
    • Web of Science | Embase | PsycINFO | Cochrane Library 
  • Inclusion criteria
    • RCTs
    • Omega-3 PUFAs compared to placebo or any active comparator
  • Compared
    • Pregnant women vs postpartum women
    • Prevention vs treatment of perinatal depression

RESULTS:

  • 18 RCTs | 4,052 participants
  • Overall significant small beneficial effect of omega-3 PUFAs on depressive symptoms vs placebo (P=0.042)
    • Standardized difference in means [SDM] −0.236 (95% CI, −0.463 to −0.009)
  • There was considerable heterogeneity between RCTs
    • I2 statistic: 88.58%
  • There were also significant subgroup differences
  • There was an effect (medium to large) in postpartum depression (P=0.0214)
    • Postpartum women: SDM −0.656 (95% CI −1.690 to 0.378; P=0.0214)
    • During pregnancy: Negligible effect

CONCLUSION:

  • Overall, omega-3 PUFA supplementation has a small but significant beneficial effect on perinatal depression, though the effect was seen during the postpartum period and not during pregnancy
  • The authors advise against prescribing omega-3 PUFAs for the treatment or prevention of depressive symptoms during pregnancy
  • However, omega-3 PUFA supplements may be a promising add-on treatment for postpartum depression

Learn More – Primary Sources:

Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation for Perinatal Depression: A Meta-Analysis

Now You Can Get ObG Clinical Research Summaries Direct to Your Phone, with ObGFirst

ObGFirst® – Try It Free! »

image_pdfFavoriteLoadingFavorite
< Previous
All Grand Rounds Posts
Next >

Related ObG Topics:

Screening for Perinatal Depression
The Four Maternal Characteristics that Predict Postpartum Depression Severity
Does General Anesthesia for Cesarean Increase Odds of Severe Postpartum Depression?
Do Selective Dietary Supplements Help with Postpartum Mood?

Sections

  • Alerts
  • OB
  • GYN
    • GYN
    • Sexual Health
  • 2T US Atlas
  • The Genome
  • Primary Care
  • Your Practice
  • Grand Rounds
  • My Bookshelf
  • COVID-19

Are you an
ObG Insider?

Get specially curated clinical summaries delivered to your inbox every week for free

  • Site Map/
  • © ObG Project/
  • Terms and Conditions/
  • Privacy/
  • Contact Us/
© ObG Project
SSL Certificate


  • Already an ObGFirst Member?
    Welcome back

    Log In

    Want to sign up?
    Get guideline notifications
    CME Included

    Sign Up

Sign In

Lost your password?

Sign Up for ObGFirst and Stay Ahead

  • - Professional guideline notifications
  • - Daily summary of a clinically relevant
    research paper
  • - Includes 1 hour of CME every month

ObGFirst Free Trial

Already a Member of ObGFirst®?

Please log in to ObGFirst to access the 2T US Atlas

Password Trouble?

Not an ObGFirst® Member Yet?

  • - Access 2T US Atlas
  • - Guideline notifications
  • - Daily research paper summaries
  • - And lots more!
ObGFirst Free Trial

Media - Internet

Computer System Requirements

OBG Project CME requires a modern web browser (Internet Explorer 10+, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge). Certain educational activities may require additional software to view multimedia, presentation, or printable versions of their content. These activities will be marked as such and will provide links to the required software. That software may be: Adobe Flash, Apple QuickTime, Adobe Acrobat, Microsoft PowerPoint, Windows Media Player, or Real Networks Real One Player.

Disclosure of Unlabeled Use

This educational activity may contain discussion of published and/or investigational uses of agents that are not indicated by the FDA. The planners of this activity do not recommend the use of any agent outside of the labeled indications.

The opinions expressed in the educational activity are those of the faculty and do not necessarily represent the views of the planners. Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indications, contraindications, and warnings.

Disclaimer

Participants have an implied responsibility to use the newly acquired information to enhance patient outcomes and their own professional development. The information
presented in this activity is not meant to serve as a guideline for patient management. Any procedures, medications, or other courses of diagnosis or treatment discussed or suggested in this activity should not be used by clinicians without evaluation of their patient’s conditions and possible contraindications and/or dangers in use, review of any applicable manufacturer’s product information, and comparison with recommendations of other authorities.

Jointly provided by

NOT ENOUGH CME HOURS

It appears you don't have enough CME Hours to take this Post-Test. Feel free to buy additional CME hours or upgrade your current CME subscription plan

Subscribe

JOIN OBGFIRST AND GET CME/CE CREDITS

One of the benefits of an ObGFirst subscription is the ability to earn CME/CE credits from the ObG entries you read. Tap the button to learn more about ObGFirst

Learn More
Leaving ObG Website

You are now leaving the ObG website and on your way to PRIORITY at UCSF, an independent website. Therefore, we are not responsible for the content or availability of this site