There is no evidence that PUFA supplementation in infancy has an effect on infant or childhood allergy , asthma , dermatitis/eczema or food allergy .
However , the quality of evidence was very low .
There was insufficient evidence to determine an effect on allergic rhinitis
BACKGROUND Early dietary intakes may influence the development of allergic disease .
It is important to determine if dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids ( PUFAs ) given as supplements or added to infant formula prevent the development of allergy .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effect of higher PUFA intake during infancy to prevent allergic disease .
Fish oil supplementation of lactating mothers affects cytokine production in 2 1/2-year-old children
Abstract n−3 PUFA influence immune functioning and may affect the cytokine phenotype during development . To examine whether maternal fish oil supplementation during lactation could modify later  immune responses in children , 122 lactating Danish mothers with a fish intake below the population median were r and omized to groups supplemented for the first 4 mon of lactation with 4.5 g/d of fish oil ( equivalent to 1.5 g/d of n−3 long-chain PUFA ) or olive oil .  Fifty-three mothers with a fish intake in the highest quartile of the population were also included . The FA composition of erythrocyte membranes was measured at 4 mon and at 2 1/2 yr . Plasma immunoglobulin E ( IgE ) levels and cytokine production in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated whole-blood cultures were determined at 2 1/2 yr . Erythrocyte n−3 PUFA at 4 mon were higher in infants from the fish oil group compared with the olive oil group ( P<0.001 ) but were no longer different at 2 1/2 yr . The median production of lipopolysaccharide-induced interferon γ(IFN-γ ) in the fish oil group was fourfold higher than that in the olive oil group ( P=0.034 ) , whereas interleukin-10 ( IL-10 ) production was similar . The IFN-γ/IL-10 ratio was twofold higher in the fish oil group ( P=0.019 ) and was positively correlated with 20∶5n−3/20∶4n−6 in erythrocytes at 4 mon ( P=0.050 ) . The percentages of atopic children and plasma IgE were not different in the two groups , but the study was not design ed to look at atopy . Cytokine responses and erythrocyte FA composition in children of mothers with a high fish intake were intermediate in comparison with those in the r and omized groups . Fish oil supplementation during lactation result ed in increased in vitro IFN-γ production in the children 2 yr after the supplementation was given , which may reflect a faster maturation of the immune system
There is no evidence that PUFA supplementation in infancy has an effect on infant or childhood allergy , asthma , dermatitis/eczema or food allergy .
However , the quality of evidence was very low .
There was insufficient evidence to determine an effect on allergic rhinitis
BACKGROUND Early dietary intakes may influence the development of allergic disease .
It is important to determine if dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids ( PUFAs ) given as supplements or added to infant formula prevent the development of allergy .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effect of higher PUFA intake during infancy to prevent allergic disease .