Prenatal Supplement Linked to 8-Point IQ Jump in Kids by Age 4, Study Finds

A nutrient found in eggs and many ordinary prenatal vitamins may do more for a developing baby than anyone expected. Four-year-olds whose mothers took high doses of it during pregnancy scored about 8 points higher on IQ testing than children whose mothers took a placebo, and they were far less likely to show social withdrawal behaviors, including some often seen in Autism Spectrum Disorder, according to a new clinical trial from the University of Colorado.

Researchers followed more than 200 pregnant women who took high daily doses of phosphatidylcholine, a nutrient the body converts into choline and that occurs naturally in foods like eggs, meat, and fish. Other participants received a placebo, a dummy capsule with no active ingredient, and neither the women nor the researchers knew who was getting which until the study ended. By age four, only 4 percent of children in the supplement group showed multiple or lasting withdrawal problems, compared to 24 percent of children whose mothers took the placebo.

Not everything lined up perfectly. Attention problems, one of the two main things researchers tracked, did not improve in any meaningful way. Still, the study’s authors, writing in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, describe their results as “safe, effective support of fetal brain development,” and they believe the data could shape how doctors talk to pregnant patients who are already curious about the choline supplements sold over the counter.

How Scientists Tested the Prenatal Choline Supplement

Researchers recruited 211 pregnant women at University of Colorado-affiliated clinics between 2017 and 2021. All were 12 to 15 weeks pregnant at enrollment and carried a single healthy fetus confirmed by ultrasound. After a short trial run to confirm the women could reliably take capsules, researchers randomly assigned 206 women at 16 weeks of pregnancy to take either phosphatidylcholine or a placebo, continuing through delivery. The dosing was heavy: participants took 10 capsules a day, delivering 9,000 milligrams of phosphatidylcholine, which equals about 1,285 milligrams of actual choline. Everyone in the study, regardless of group, also received standard prenatal vitamins and advice to eat more choline-rich foods.

From 18 months to 4 years of age, parents completed a standard behavior checklist for 142 children, rating behaviors such as withdrawal from others, poor eye contact, and inattentiveness. At ages 3 and 4, 103 children also completed a widely used preschool intelligence test. Soon after birth, researchers measured a brain-wave response that shows how well a newborn’s brain tunes out repeated sounds, a marker tied to early brain wiring.

Interest in this particular nutrient traces back to a gene called CHRNA7, which earlier research has connected to brain development problems seen in schizophrenia, attention deficit disorder, and autism. Choline is thought to activate receptors produced by that gene in the developing brain, helping nerve cells form connections before birth.

What the Prenatal Choline Study Found

Results favored the supplement group on two of the three main measures. Children of mothers who took phosphatidylcholine were far less likely to show multiple or lasting withdrawal problems. Within that group, a smaller analysis found that 10 out of 71 children born to placebo mothers showed language difficulties and behavior patterns commonly seen in Autism Spectrum Disorder, versus just 1 out of 71 in the supplement group, a tenfold difference in those autism-related behavioral signs. Researchers noted this particular comparison involved a small number of children and should be read as an early signal rather than a settled conclusion.

Cognitive scores told an encouraging story, too. Four-year-olds whose mothers took the supplement averaged an IQ score of 106, compared to about 98 for children in the placebo group. Twelve children scored above the 90th percentile on IQ testing, and ten of those twelve came from the phosphatidylcholine group. Meanwhile, six children who scored below the 10th percentile at both ages 3 and 4 came from mothers who took the placebo.

Attention problems, by contrast, did not improve with the supplement, and the authors reported that plainly rather than glossing over it. The safety data looked reassuring across the board: no meaningful increase in nausea, vomiting, dizziness, or high blood pressure, and no differences in birth outcomes or physical growth tied to the supplement itself.

An unplanned opportunity came up during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some pregnant participants who had contracted the virus, or who were living with someone who was ill, were offered an extra, open-label dose of the supplement on top of their original assignment, while investigators stayed blind to each woman’s original group. During that stretch, women in the supplement group showed lower levels of an inflammation-related blood marker than women on placebo, hinting at a possible benefit, though the trial was not designed to test whether the supplement helped during illness.

Limits Parents Should Keep in Mind

Researchers were upfront about the limits of their work. Parent-reported behavior ratings carry some subjectivity, and women who stayed in the study through year four tended to be more educated than those who dropped out, a pattern that could skew results toward rosier outcomes. Roughly one-third of enrolled participants did not complete the four-year follow-up, and fewer than half completed the IQ testing.

Diets were not tracked in detail, and the study group was mostly White and more educated because it was conducted through university clinics. The authors point to other research involving more varied groups of women, including low-income mothers and women in alcohol-exposed pregnancies, that found similar benefits from higher choline levels, suggesting the effect may reach beyond the specific population studied here.

Dose is another wrinkle. The authors believe a lower dose may work just as well, based on a comparison with an earlier trial. Comparing results across this study and that earlier, smaller one, they suggest a daily amount closer to 6,300 milligrams of phosphatidylcholine, or about 900 milligrams of choline, rather than the higher 9,000-milligram dose used here, since the larger dose didn’t appear to raise choline levels in the blood any further.

Pregnant women considering a choline supplement already have options. Major prenatal vitamin makers sell choline-containing products, and these supplements don’t require a prescription. This trial adds a direct, controlled comparison showing measurable behavioral and cognitive differences by age four, paired with a dosing suggestion and a reassuring safety record, rather than relying on scattered observations.

Choline supplementation during pregnancy is not a new idea, but solid evidence that it may lower markers associated with autism risk while improving cognitive scores is still rare enough to matter. The attention-problem results remind us that no single nutrient fixes every developmental concern. Still, for a widely available, over-the-counter supplement with no significant safety problems in this trial, the combination of fewer social withdrawal symptoms and higher IQ scores deserves attention from both expecting parents and the doctors advising them.

Disclaimer: This article summarizes a single randomized clinical trial and is for general information, not medical advice. The IQ and autism-related findings came from subgroups after about one-third of participants left the study, and the autism signal was based on parent-reported behavior screening rather than clinical diagnoses. Pregnant women should talk with their own doctor before starting any supplement.