ArticleJournal of epidemiology2013
Associations of prenatal mercury exposure from maternal fish consumption and polyunsaturated fatty acids with child neurodevelopment: a prospective cohort study in Italy.
Article in Journal of epidemiology, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 40 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
40 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 106 citations in OpenAlex.
- Relationship of prenatal methylmercury exposure and language/verbal function: a meta-analysis.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2025Pooled it
- Neurodevelopmental Outcomes Associated with Early-Life Exposure to Heavy Metals: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Pooled it
- Seafood During Pregnancy and Lactation and Child Neurocognitive Development: A Systematic Review.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2025Pooled it
- Prenatal Mercury Exposure and Neurodevelopment up to the Age of 5 Years: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Pooled it
- Relationships between seafood consumption during pregnancy and childhood and neurocognitive development: Two systematic reviews.Prostaglandins, leukotrienes, and essential fatty acids · 2019Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Chronic atrophic gastritis in association with hair mercury level.Tumour biology : the journal of the International Society for Oncodevelopmental Biology and Medicine · 2014Trial
- Global Comparison of Erythrocyte EPA and DHA Concentrations in Pregnant Women.The Journal of nutrition · 2026Article
- Which prenatal biomarker is most appropriate for methylmercury dose-response for neurodevelopmental effects?Journal of toxicology and environmental health. Part B, Critical reviews · 2025Review
- Article
- Seafood Toxicant Exposure During Pregnancy, Lactation, and Childhood and Child Outcomes: A Scoping Review.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2025Article
- Role of maternal alcohol intake during pregnancy in early-life child neurodevelopment: results of the Italian PHIME cohort.BMJ nutrition, prevention & health · 2025Article
- Fish Consumption and DHA Supplementation during Pregnancy: Study of Gestational and Neonatal Outcomes.Nutrients · 2024Article
- MeXpose-A Modular Imaging Pipeline for the Quantitative Assessment of Cellular Metal Bioaccumulation.JACS Au · 2024Article
- Investigation of the Effects of Maternal Nutrition during Pregnancy on Cognitive Functions of Toddlers: A Systematic Review.International journal of preventive medicine · 2024Review
- Net effects explains the benefits to children from maternal fish consumption despite methylmercury in fish.Neurotoxicology · 2023Article
- National, longitudinal NASCITA birth cohort study to investigate the health of Italian children and potential influencing factors.BMJ open · 2022Observational
- Are Dietary Patterns Related to Cognitive Performance in 7-Year-Old Children? Evidence from a Birth Cohort in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy.Nutrients · 2022Article
- Article
- Adherence to Dietary Recommendations of 7-Year-Old Children from a Birth Cohort in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy.Nutrients · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
14 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMercury is a neurotoxin, and limited prenatal exposure to it can affect long-term child neurodevelopment. However, results of epidemiologic studies of such exposure have been inconsistent. We examined the association of prenatal mercury exposure from maternal fish consumption with child neurodevelopment in northern Italy.
methodsA population-based cohort of 606 children and their mothers was studied from pregnancy to age 18 months. Mercury levels were measured in maternal hair and blood during pregnancy and in umbilical cord blood and breast milk. Levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) were measured in maternal serum. Maternal and child intakes of fish were assessed by using a food frequency questionnaire. The Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition (BSID-III) was used to evaluate child neurodevelopment. Multivariate linear regression was used to examine the association of mercury exposure with BSID-III scores, after controlling for maternal fish intake, PUFAs during pregnancy, and several other confounders.
resultsMean weekly fish intake during pregnancy was less than 2 servings. Mercury concentrations in biological samples were low (mean, 1061 ng/g in hair) and moderately correlated with fish intake, particularly of carnivorous species. Maternal ω-3 PUFA concentrations were poorly correlated with fish intake. Maternal intelligence quotient (IQ) and child intake of fish were significantly associated with neurodevelopment scores. In multivariate models, the level of Hg exposure was not associated with neurodevelopmental performance at 18 months.
conclusionsIn this Italian population, neurodevelopment at 18 months was associated with child intake of fresh fish and maternal IQ rather than with mercury exposure. The expected beneficial effect of maternal fish intake (from maternal ω-3 PUFAs) was not found.
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