Cited by 670Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and PostpartumChild Nutrition and Water AccessMaternal and Neonatal Healthcare

Impact of Maternal Depression on Infant Nutritional Status and Illness: A Cohort Study

Rahman, Atif, Iqbal, Zafar, Bunn, James, Lovel, Hermione, Harrington, Richard·2004·Archives of General Psychiatry

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The risk for emotional and behavioral problems is known to be high among children of depressed mothers, but little is known about the impact of prenatal and postnatal depression on the physical health of infants. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether maternal depression is a risk factor for malnutrition and illness in infants living in a low-income country. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Rural community in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. PARTICIPANTS: Six hundred thirty-two physically healthy women were assessed in their third trimester of pregnancy to obtain at birth a cohort of 160 infants of depressed mothers and 160 infants of psychologically well mothers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: All infants were weighed and measured at birth and at 2, 6, and 12 months of age, and they were monitored for episodes of diarrhea and acute respiratory infections. The mothers' mental states were reassessed at 2, 6, and 12 months. Data were collected on potential confounders of infant outcomes, such as birth weight and socioeconomic status. RESULTS: Infants of prenatally depressed mothers showed significantly more growth retardation than controls at all time points. The relative risks for being underweight (weight-for-age z score of less than -2) were 4.0 (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.1 to 7.7) at 6 months of age and 2.6 (95% CI, 1.7 to 4.1) at 12 months of age, and the relative risks for stunting (length-for-age z score of less than -2) were 4.4 (95% CI, 1.7 to 11.4) at 6 months of age and 2.5 (95% CI, 1.6 to 4.0) at 12 months of age. The relative risk for 5 or more diarrheal episodes per year was 2.4 (95% CI, 1.7 to 3.3). Chronic depression carried a greater risk for poor outcome than episodic depression. The associations remained significant after adjustment for confounders by multivariate analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal depression in the prenatal and postnatal periods predicts poorer growth and higher risk of diarrhea in a community sample of infants. As depression can be identified relatively easily, it could be an important marker for a high-risk infant group. Early treatment of prenatal and postnatal depression could benefit not only the mother's mental health but also the infant's physical health and development.

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Crossref · 10.1001/archpsyc.61.9.946

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  • Psychosocial stress in parents, including depressive or anxious symptoms, is associated with infant developmental delay and poor nutritional outcomes.

    “Psychosocial stress in parents, including depressive or anxious symptoms, is also associated with infant developmental delay [5] and poor nutritional outcomes [8].”

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Authors
Rahman, A., Iqbal, Z., Bunn, J., Lovel, H., & Harrington, R.
Venue
Archives of General Psychiatry
Published
2004-09-01
Volume
61
Issue
9
Pages
946
ISSN
0003-990X (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2164407672
Cited by
670
References
34
Citations by year
2026: 13 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 23 · 2021: 42 · 2020: 26 · 2019: 32 · 2018: 37 · 2017: 40 · 2016: 39 · 2015: 33 · 2014: 40 · 2013: 35 · 2012: 45
FWCI
21.00
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Archives of General Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • LSTM Online Archive (Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine) (submittedVersion)
  • Research Explorer (The University of Manchester) (submittedVersion)
Funders
Wellcome Trust
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
  • Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Child Nutrition and Water Access
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare
Keywords
maternal depression, antenatal depression, postpartum depression, infant growth, infant malnutrition, stunting, underweight, diarrhea, acute respiratory infections, low-income countries, infant health, rural Pakistan, birth weight, socioeconomic status, high-risk infants, infant mortality risk factors, infant morbidity
MeSH terms
Birth Weight, Child, Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena, Child, Preschool, Depressive Disorder, Diarrhea, Infantile, Female, Growth Disorders, Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Longitudinal Studies, Nutritional Status, Pakistan, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Complications, Prospective Studies, Risk Factors, Rural Population, Cohort Studies, Child Nutrition Disorders, Child of Impaired Parents, Depression, Postpartum

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