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Maternal caregiving may reverse effects of stress during pregnancy on newborns

11/17/2021

A study published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry suggests that mothers’ sensitive caregiving after giving birth may erase some of the negative effects of stress during pregnancy on newborns. 

In the study of 94 mother-infant pairs, higher levels of the primary stress hormone cortisol in women during pregnancy were associated with greater cortisol-based stress responses in infants, but only in those whose mothers were less emotionally available after birth. Other markers of stress during pregnancy did not show this association, however. 

“These results are strikingly similar to those reported in animal work and emphasize the joint contribution of prenatal and postnatal environments in programming of later outcomes,” said lead author Sarah Nazzari, of Scientific Institute IRCCS Eugenio Medea, in Italy. “From a clinical perspective, findings suggest that enhancing maternal sensitive caregiving, especially in situations of high stress in pregnancy, should be a key target of postnatal interventions in order to attenuate the long-term consequences of prenatal adversity on child development.”

Additional Information

Link to Study: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcpp.13532

About Journal

The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (JCPP) is widely recognised to be the leading international journal covering both child and adolescent psychology and psychiatry. JCPP publishes the highest quality clinically relevant research in psychology, psychiatry and related disciplines. With a large and expanding global readership, its coverage includes studies on epidemiology, diagnosis, psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacological treatments, behaviour, cognition, neuroscience, neurobiology and genetic aspects of childhood disorders. Articles published include experimental, longitudinal and intervention studies, especially those that advance our understanding of developmental psychopathology and that inform both theory and clinical practice. An important function of the Journal is to bring together empirical research, clinical studies and reviews of high quality that arise from different points of view, different theoretical perspectives and different disciplines.

About Wiley

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