Should I Take Omega 3's While Pregnant?

Q. Should I be taking an Omega 3 fish oil supplement while I am pregnant or should I just eat more fish? - Elana

A: According to, pregnant women need to avoid eating raw and certain types of fish since they can contain high levels of mercury, PCB’s and other heavy metals. Examples of this include farmed fish and larger fish such as Sword Fish, Halibut, Canned Tuna, Pike and Large Mouth Bass. Also, it is recommended not to eat no more than one serving of these fish per month: Mahi Mahi, Blue Mussel, Eastern oyster, Cod, Pollock and Great Lake Salmon. For a full list of fish to avoid while pregnant, visit: www.EWG.org/safefishlist. Therefore, we do recommend taking a high quality fish oil supplement throughout the duration of your pregnancy (given that you aren’t allergic to fish).

We recently created two videos (part 1 and part 2) on the importance of fish oil during pregnancy. They are worth checking out.