Mothers' Mood Disorders Directly Affect the Mood of Newborns

A standard stress test can determine which mothers are dealing with depression or anxiety through the physiological signs of their baby. The University of Heidelberg, the Ludwigs-Maximilians University of Munich, the University of Wien, and the University of Ulm collaborated to compare the health of mothers and their babies as a part of the COMPARE study.

The team found that about 10 to 20% of pregnant women have mood disorders during pregnancy and after giving birth or the postpartum period. How mothers interact with their infants during the first months from the time of birth affects a baby's healthy development. Mothers with anxiety and/or depression around the time of birth then had postpartum depression affected the mood of their newborn babies.

One of the physical signs was a significantly increased heart rate which could develop into emotional stress in later years. other factors such as lack of affection, which is essential during the early stages of development, could result in children having various insecurities when they get older.

Still Face Test

50 mothers and their babies took part in the research. 30 of the mothers were healthy during pregnancy and the postpartum period while the rest mothers had a negative mood disorder. Using the 'Still Face Test,' the team demonstrated the effect of mothers being emotionally distant from their newborns.

First, the mothers played and interacted with their babies for two minutes, had a 'blank' period of interaction for another two minutes where there was eye contact with no interaction, then returned to normal interaction. Meanwhile, the researchers measured the heart rates of all mothers and babies during the test.

The second phase of the test revealed that the babies had increased negative emotions, avoiding behaviors, and less social engagement. When mothers withdrew from playful interaction, the babies of mothers with depression or anxiety had significantly higher heart rates, nearly eight beats per minute more than those with healthy mothers.

Mothers with mood disorders also described that their babies had a more difficult temperament than babies with healthier mothers. Fabio Blanco-Dormond from the University of Heidelberg said that their researcher may be 'one of the first times this physical effect has been seen in three-month-old infants.'

Diagnosis & Treatment of Mood Disorders

Anxious or depressed mothers had babies with sensitive physiological responses to stress during the Still Face Test compared to babies with healthy mothers. It was evident in the significant differences in heart rates during the non-interactive phase, Blanco-Dormond explained. Since these are only preliminary findings, the team hopes to conduct a larger study to see if the results will be consistent.

Professor Veerle Bergink, from the Icahn School of Medicine's Women's Mental Health Program, said that the study revealed how critical it is to diagnose and treat mood disorders in new mothers due to the stress having an immediate impact on their babies. Previous studies have shown both short-term and 'long-term adverse effects of postpartum mood disorders on the children,' said Bergink. 'Most postpartum mood disorders start during, or even before pregnancy, and early diagnosis is therefore important.'

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