Sjurdur Frodi Olsen

Professor, Fetal Programming, Department of Epidemiology Research

Research Areas

My group is focusing on impact on health of dietary intake in pregnancy and during the adolescent years. A central research resource is the Danish National Birth Cohort, where we are following a cohort of 90,000 born during 1996-2003. My group has, together with associated groups, published >200 peer reviewed articles relating pregnancy diet to various health outcomes. A special line has been to study whether marine n-3 fatty acids can delay spontaneous delivery and prevent preterm birth. I and colleagues, in a paper in the Lancet, initially suggested this hypothesis, which in 2018 was corroborated by an extensive Cochrane review of randomized trials. Experiences from our studies, including our Chinese trial published in 2019 (see list of Selected publications), collectively suggest that the delaying effect of marine n-3 fatty acids on timing of spontaneous delivery might be fast but of short duration. In our data, there is also evidence to suggest that the relationship might be non-linear, with a low “saturation point”; and that small doses may have substantial effects in women who are below the saturation point. A recent international clinical practice guideline, published in Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM on behalf of six associations including the European Society for Paediatric Research, provided recommendations on marine n-3 fatty acid supply in pregnancy for risk reduction of preterm and early preterm birth.