Depression During Pregnancy Linked to Premature Birth

According to a recent study done by Kaiser Permanente, babies born to moms who are depressed in pregnancy are at greater risk of being born prematurely which is the leading cause of infant mortality.

In the study, women with severe depression were two times more likely to deliver a premature baby or one born before 37 weeks. Most of the women were younger than 25 and all were near their tenth week of pregnancy. Of the 791 women in the study, over forty percent were reported as having significant symptoms and over twenty percent were severely depressed.

Dr. Shari I. Lusskin, director of reproductive psychiatry at New York University Medical Center, suggests that women who are facing depression be treated. And, Lusskin added, "Ante-natal depression interferes with bonding with the baby both during pregnancy and post-partum."

Dr. De-Kun Li, a perinatal epidemiologist and senior research scientist at Kaiser and lead author of the study said that until now, depression during pregnancy has been "under-estimated and under-treated," he said, "not just by women, but also by their doctors." And that the findings were significant in how to treat pregnant women who are depressed.

Issues inside the womb are still being studied, but some researchers and child psychologists believe that an unborn child can tell that their mother is depressed or that their mother does not want them. Other problems with mothers who do not bond with their babies either before or after birth can make their child feel unwanted and cause insecurities to develop. These insecurities can lead to anger issues and rebellion because the mother child bond was never formed and counseling may be needed when the child is older. So much is still unknown about the cross connection between a mother and the child inside her womb.