Mother’s mental health affects baby
Babies carried by mothers suffering from mental illness face major challenges, sometimes before they are even born.
Babies carried by mothers suffering from mental illness face major challenges, sometimes before they are even born.
The cause of death for these infants varied, leading the researchers to conclude factors other than the mental illness itself may be coming into play. Women with other psychotic illnesses, including manic depression and drug and alcohol addiction, were also shown to be putting their unborn children at a greater risk.
Dr Kathryn Abel, who works in the university’s School of Medicine, said: “The fact that the link between the cause of death and the illness of the mother varies, suggests that factors other than mental disorder are involved. Lifestyle, such as smoking and poor diet, and less antenatal care and poverty can also increase the chances of complication during childbirth.”
By Leila Sattary
