Mom’s Stress During Pregnancy Affects Baby’s Immune System

According to the new research, women who are stressed during pregnancy are more likely to have babies with immune-related problems such as allergies and asthma.

Animal studies have already shown that the immune system of offspring is more sensitive to allergens when mothers are stressed when pregnant.

In this study on human subjects, the researchers said their results suggested the same is probably true of humans: the stress experienced by a pregnant mother may translate into long term health problems for her child.

The researchers found that the mothers who were under the most stress (measured in terms of the number of problem domains reported) while pregnant gave birth to babies with high levels of IgE in their cord blood, even though the level of dust mites in their home environment was low.

The stress of the mother was contributing to the higher IgE sensitivity of the baby. Stress itself acted like a social pollutant that influenced the body’s immune response. Stress in childhood may modify developmental trajectories and have a long-term effect on disease risk.

Source: Medical News Today