Postpartum depression is not usually given the attention it deserves. Sometimes it is underestimated by confusing it with fatigue or difficulty adapting to the new mother's reality, but it is much more than that. Women who suffer from postpartum depression, it is estimated that one in seven women, live with an invisible fanstasma that prevents them from feeling happy after giving birth.
A new study on postpartum depression published in Science Daily found that the chances of developing this condition increased between 71 and 79 percent when the mothers had baby boys, and that increased markedly when they had suffered birth complications.
The mother's immune system could be key
Researchers at the University of Kent studied the cases of 296 women through a retrospective survey, and concluded that child pregnancies, as well as suffering birth complications, greatly increases the risk of developing postpartum depression.
At the same time, although it is usually related to hormonal factors, recent research indicates that the mother's immune system could play an important role in the development of postpartum depression. There is a known link between the inflammatory immune response in an area of the brain, which is important for mood regulation, and the development of depressive symptoms.
Research indicates that the maternal immune environment differs according to fetal sex, since women waiting for a child show a greater increase in proinflammatory markers compared to women who expect a girl.
In Babies and more Postpartum depression is more frequent than you imagine, but it has a solution"Both the gestation of male fetuses and the experience of complications in childbirth have documented associations with an increase in inflammation, however, until this study, their relations with postpartum depression were not clear," said Dr. Sarah Johns and Dr. Sarah Myers, responsible for the study.
Complications in childbirth
Suffering complications in childbirth is another great risk factor when developing postpartum depression. It is normal that if the experience has been negative or traumatic, or there have been complications that were not expected, the mother's mood will be affected.
The increase is very considerable: women whose deliveries had complications they were 174% more likely to experience postpartum depression compared to those women who had no complications.
In Babies and more The sincere photos of a mother that show the reality of her fight against postpartum depressionBut interestingly, the research also showed that while women with a previous tendency to symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress were at a higher risk of developing postpartum depression, they were less likely to develop it if they experienced birth complications. This could be due to the fact that women at higher risk received greater postpartum support because their mental health concerns were previously recognized.
