Mother's Depression Transmitted to Children

Children born to mothers who are depressed during and after pregnancy (with antenatal and postnatal) are more likely to develop depressive symptoms by the age of 24, as per a study “Maternal and Paternal Depression and Child Mental Health Trajectories: Evidence from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children”, at the University of Bristol, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry.

The study examined the survey information (Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children) of 5,029 individuals between the ages of 10 to 24 during 14 years to assess how risks of depression occur across childhood and adolescence.

Adolescent Depression - Causes - Affects - Depressed Teens - Treatment - FAQs
Adolescent depression is an ailment that occurs during the teenage characterized by persistent melancholy, disappointment and loss of self-esteem.

‘Children born to mothers who are depressed during and after pregnancy are more likely to develop depressive symptoms by the age of 24 years. ’

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Depression and Pregnancy

It was found that young people had depression scores that were almost three points higher than offspring of mothers with no depression. However the impact of the father’s depression was also considered but the sample was very small.

Moreover, offspring of mothers with a history of antenatal depression had higher levels of depression throughout and that of postnatal depression had an increase in depressive symptoms over time. This derives the importance of timing of maternal antenatal and postnatal depression for support and interventions.

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Clinical Depression is a serious medical condition that affects majority of people at some point in their lives. Symptoms of clinical depression include sleep disorder, loss of appetite.

Early Measures

“By tracking trajectories of repeated measures of mood in offspring of depressed mothers, from childhood through to adulthood, we were able to provide further insight into how the well-known intergenerational risk of depressed mood presents over time,” says Dr. Rebecca Pearson, senior author and senior lecturer in psychiatric epidemiology at the University of Bristol / Professor of Psychology at Manchester Metropolitan University.

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Depression occurs due to alterations in the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain.

The study thereby highlights that earlier mental health screening for all mothers may help provide effective & evidence-based treatments to avoid the child’s risk of future mental health.

However further work is needed to look at broader aspects of the populations and other factors across different cultures.

Source-Medindia