Possible link between depression during pregnancy and slower development in children
Publication Date:30/06/2008
Women who are depressed for a long time while pregnant might have babies who develop at a slower rate than other babies, a study has found. However, there are so many things that influence a child's development, it's hard to be sure exactly what effect depression in pregnancy really has.
The researchers say that midwives and GPs should try to spot pregnant women with symptoms of depression, to make sure they get the help they need.
What do we know already?
It's well-known that depression after having a baby (postnatal depression) can have a negative affect on a child's development. It can stop mothers from bonding with their baby. But less is known about whether a woman's mood during pregnancy can affect how her child develops.
Previous research has found that being anxious during pregnancy could affect blood flow to the womb. And being anxious late in pregnancy can lead to behavioural and emotional problems in children at four years of age.
Researchers in Bristol followed over 9,000 pregnant women to find out whether having depression during pregnancy (antenatal depression) could impact on a baby's development.
What does the new study say?
The study found that, at 18 months of age, children whose mothers were depressed for weeks at a time during pregnancy were slightly more likely to have developmental delays. But some of the risk is probably due to postnatal depression, rather than antenatal depression.
When the researchers took account of postnatal depression, they found that there was still a slightly raised risk of developmental delays among children whose mothers were depressed during pregnancy.
However, the study also had some slightly odd results that make it hard to be sure what the real effect of antenatal depression is. For example, there was no obvious effect on development for children whose mothers had suffered the most severe symptoms of depression.
Tell me more about the study's findings
The researchers followed 9,244 women who were due to give birth between April 1991 and December 1992. The women used a questionnaire to rate their mood, twice during their pregnancy (at 18 and 32 weeks) and twice after having their baby (at 8 weeks and 8 months). Parents also filled in a questionnaire about their child's development at 18 months old.
Where does the study come from?
The study was done by researchers from the University of the West of England in Bristol, and the University of Bristol. It was published in a journal called the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.
How reliable are the findings?
There are so many things that influence both a mother's mental health and a child's development that it's difficult to spot the effect of just one factor, like antenatal depression. For example, families from deprived areas may be more likely to suffer from depression, and also to have children who develop more slowly. The researchers tried to take other possible causes into account, but it's hard to know whether they covered everything.
Also, the number of women who had depression during their pregnancy was small. Only 14 in 100 women had depression at some time during their pregnancy, without also being depressed after their baby was born.
The researchers used questionnaires to ask women about their mental health and about their child's development. The women hadn't necessarily been diagnosed with depression by a doctor, and the children weren't checked for developmental problems by a doctor or health visitor. Questionnaires tend to be less accurate at spotting whether someone has a particular health problem, and sometimes suggest there's a problem when there isn't. So, this could have made the study less reliable.
What does this mean for me?
This study is important for women who are pregnant, and for the doctors and midwives who look after them. There's a possibility that your mood during pregnancy could influence how your child develops, and that being depressed while pregnant could be linked to developmental problems in young children.
However, it seems that you need to be depressed for a long time before there's any effect on your child. In the study, only the children of women who were depressed at both 18 and 32 weeks had developmental delays.
Also, there are still some things we don't know. For example, we don't know if the development of children who are affected very early in life catch up by the time they are 2 or 3. And we also don't know if getting treatment for pregnant women who are depressed can prevent developmental delays in children at risk.
What should I do now?
If you're pregnant and think you might have depression, it's important to talk to someone about how you're feeling. Being depressed is much more than feeling a bit down. If you find it hard to cope with life, have trouble sleeping, feel sad most of the time, feel irritable, have no energy and find it hard to make decisions, it could be a sign that you have depression.
Doctors are very careful about treating depression in pregnant women. They are reluctant to prescribe antidepressants because these could harm the baby. But there are many non-drug treatments for depression that work very well. Talking treatments, such as cognitive behaviour therapy and interpersonal therapy, help many people who are depressed. And they won't harm your baby.
From:
Deave T, Heron J, Evans J, et al. The impact of maternal depression in pregnancy on early child development. British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. 2008; 115: 1043-1051.
To learn more see our information on depression and postnatal depression.
News Archive
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited ("BMJ Group") 2007. All rights reserved
This information does not replace medical advice. If you are concerned you might have a medical problem please ask your Boots pharmacy team in your local Boots store, or see your doctor.
