 News
16th May 2006
Stress in pregnancy may help baby
Moderate stress during pregnancy does not harm the unborn
baby, according to new research.
Researchers at the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public
Health in Baltimore found that maternal stress could even aid the baby's
development in later life.
The team asked 137 healthy women with low-risk, normal pregnancies
to report on their stress between the 24th and 32nd week of pregnancy.
They found that the children of those who reported more
stress were more advanced at age two.
The study contradicts earlier research which found that
mothers can pass their stress onto their unborn babies, occasionally leading
to restricted growth and birth defects in the unborn child.
Research author development psychologist Professor Janet
DiPietro said, "We thought maybe they would show some signs of being difficult
or of emotional dysfunction. Instead we found the reverse was true."
She added that there were two possible reasons for this
saying that women who have high stress levels would be generating more
of the stress hormone cortisol which is one of the chemicals produced
naturally in the body when stress triggers a 'fight or flight' response.
"Cortisol has a bad rap as the stress hormone - but every
organ in the body needs cortisol to develop properly.
"It could be enhancing the development of organs before
birth," said Professor DiPietro.
Alternatively, said Professor DiPietro, it could be that
the type of women they are affects the way they bring up their child.
She said, "These are normal, mostly working women who are
juggling the demands of every day life. These are women that challenge
themselves - they are not severely depressed or in receipt of psychiatric
care.
"Maybe these women have higher stress levels because they
challenge themselves, and because they challenge themselves they challenge
their children after birth too prompting faster development."
The study also found that children of women who had reported
negative feelings about being pregnant appeared to show poorer behavioural
and emotional regulation although it was not clear from the research whether
this was caused by biological factors or the way the child was treated
after birth.
Professor DiPietro said, "I'd like all pregnant women to
heave a big sigh of relief - they hear all these awful stuff about everything
they do.
"Now they can stop worrying about worrying.
"The reason to avoid stress is not because it's hurting
the baby but because it is hurting you."
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