Dr Sjurour Olsen and colleagues at the Danish Epidemiology Science Centre (Copenhagen) found that eating oily fish once a week can reduce the risk of giving birth to an underweight or premature baby by 75%. In the 8,700 births studied, the women who ate little or no fish had a 7% risk of producing an underweight or premature baby compared to a 2% risk in the once-a-week group.

The study was inspired by the relatively good health of just-borns on the Faro Islands, where diet is high in fish. The researchers recommend that, where women cannot get hold of oily fish like trout, mackerel or herring, they take an Omega-3 fatty acid supplement.

Ed.- But see Dioxins and PCBs in fish in the Chemical Pollution section