Researchers Find Omega-3 May Protect Babies from THC Exposure in Womb
Previous research has shown that exposure to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis, during pregnancy can result in lower birth weight and possible heart issues in newborn animals. Now, for the first time, researchers at Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry have identified a potential way to prevent these adverse effects.
A new study published in Scientific Reports is the first to reveal a possible intervention that may counteract the reduction in birth weight and impaired heart health caused by prenatal THC exposure. The research was led by Dan Hardy and Kendrick Lee from Schulich Medicine & Dentistry.
Using rat models, the researchers found heart deficits associated with THC were counteracted by Omega-3 supplementation.
In this study, researchers were able to replicate the results from a 2019 study in which they demonstrated exposure to THC decreases stroke volume (volume of blood pumped out from the left ventricle), cardiac output (amount of blood your heart pumps out per minute) and ejection fraction (amount of blood your heart pumps each time it beats) in rat offspring.
“When we gave the animal models an Omega-3 diet during pregnancy and for three weeks postpartum, we found it prevented low birth weight outcomes,” said Hardy, the study’s lead author and professor in the departments of obstetrics and gynecology and physiology and pharmacology. “More importantly, it prevented the early decrease in cardiac function.”
According to Hardy, an Omega-3 diet consists of two important fatty acids, DHA and EPA, which play key roles in supporting fetal growth and heart health. Omega-3 has been proven to be a beneficial supplement during pregnancy in preventing gestational diabetes and protecting fetal development. It’s also a feasible intervention as Omega-3 is widely accepted and available.
“These results were promising as they show that it is possible to prevent those long-term adverse outcomes in the offspring,” said Lee, the study’s first author who conducted this research while completing his PhD at Western. “Ultimately, the best way to prevent the adverse cardiac health outcomes in offspring is to stop using cannabis, but this study raises the exciting possibility that an Omega-3 diet could be beneficial to those children, whom without choice, were exposed to cannabis in utero.”
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