Maternal Stress

Krysten Hanley

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The effects of maternal stress have various consequences on a child, the purpose of this paper is
to review the long term effects of stress felt by a mother during pregnancy placed on the child during
their lifespan. It is first important to develop a background on the most common forms of stress during
pregnancy. According to an article Stress and Pregnancy on marchofdimes.org there are many types
of stress that can cause pregnancy problems. Examples include serious stress that comes from negative
life events such as a divorce or losing a job, environmental stress such as a hurricane, long lasting
stress from depression, and even pregnancy related stress such as worrying about the health of their
baby are all types of stress that cause problems for mothers during pregnancy. These serious stressors
can increase a woman's chance of problems such as premature birth which can affect the child for life.
It is important to note that stress is a normal and expected part of life so regular stress such as work
deadlines, and sitting in traffic most likely do not add to pregnancy problems as stated in this article.
The emotional state of pregnancy on www.beginbeforebirth.org states There are two main effects
that stress has on the body. The first is the immediate response to stress. This is known as the fight or
flight response and can occur within seconds. Adrenaline and noradrenaline (also known as
epinephrine and norepinephrine) are released, and they prepare our body for immediate action in an
emergency situation such as a hurricane or earthquake. The second response is a more gradual one.
Over 20 minutes or so, our bodies release more of a hormone called cortisol. This helps our bodies to
withstand ongoing physical and mental stress. However the relationship between how someone feels,
and the responses of these two systems is quite complex, and we can feel stressed without a release of
adrenaline or cortisol.
The study Adverse obstetric and neonatal outcomes in women with mental disorders explains
the physiological issues of various types of mental disorders that can come from stress such as
depression or anxiety. Panic attacks can occur from many stressful situations and this article found that
mothers with panic disorder have a higher risk of preterm deliveries and small-for-gestational-age

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infants than controls, especially if a panic attack is experienced during gestation may be blunted during
pregnancy. Another issue that is associated with anxiety disorders is excessive vomiting, this has been
stated to cause dehydration, electrolyte imbalance and malnutrition, all of which may increase the risk
of miscarriages, of low-birth-weight babies and preterm birth. The risk is even higher if the excessive
vomiting is associated with low pregnancy weight gain.
The Queensland flood study worked to determine the extent to which flood exposure influenced
the maternal biological stress response which may then affect the maternal-placental-fetal relationship
at the biological, biochemical, and molecular levels, altering fetal development and influencing
outcomes in the offspring. The increase of the neurotransmitter catecholamine which is the
physiological response to feelings of stress results in high levels of oxidative stress and inflammatory
substances in the maternal and fetal blood. This increases the risk in problems such as preterm birth,
low birth weight, and preeclampsia. These conditions will go on to cause problems for the child later in
life. Project Ice storm suggests that fetal immune function appears to have been influenced, in girls, by the
mothers' post-traumatic stress-type symptoms from the ice storm rather than by what happened to them
objectively, above and beyond the effects of other perinatal and current life events experienced by the
mothers.

The Mothers and Children's Environmental Health study analyzes the relationship of job related
stress and infant neurodevelopment. High level of anxiety and depression or experience of stressful life
events reflect severe stress. Different aspect of stress from high strain at work defined by a combination
of high job demands with low control over work might affect the result of the studies based only on
those forms of stress. This study shows that prenatal job strain may be a contributing factor to infant
neurodevelopment and there is a gender-associated effect that boys might be more susceptible than
girls. Further follow-up evaluation is needed in order to investigate the effect of prenatal job strain on
children.

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According to a review article Systematic Review of Yoga for Pregnant Women: Current Status
and Future Directions Curtis, Weinrib, and Katz believe yoga can be beneficial to combat the negative
effects of pregnancy and stress. They state Maternal stress and anxiety during pregnancy is associated
with a host of negative consequences for the fetus and subsequent development. For instance, fetal
exposure to maternal stress and stress-related peptides is a risk factor for adverse outcomes on the
programming of the nervous system and brain morphology of fetuses, infants, and children. Early
gestational stress exposure is associated with negative outcomes at different developmental stages,
slowed maturation and behavioural response patterns in fetuses, alterations in neonatal stress regulation
and behavioural reactions to stress blunted cognitive functions and emotional and behavioural problems
in infants and toddlers, and reduced brain volume in areas associated with cognitive function in
children. Since physical activity is useful in the management of stress and other health related issues
practicing yoga during pregnancy will help combat the negative effects of stress on the fetus. Yoga is a
form of exercise that practices mindfulness and this article found reductions in anxiety and negative
mood when compared to wait list control, indicating mindfulness-based interventions are a possible
mental health approach to managing stressors associated with pregnancy, in addition to this the only
negative side effect found with this study was some women experienced uterine contractions. If
monitored this is not a serious threat to the mother or child.
According to a review article Prenatal maternal stress: effects on pregnancy and the (unborn)
child. Depression and anxiety and also some forms of work stress that are experienced during the first
trimester seem to be associated with an increased risk for developing preeclampsia in a later phase of
pregnancy. Patients who eventually develop preeclampsia often have increased serum concentrations of
placental cortisol. In addition recent well-controlled research has documented that high levels of
anxiety and depression result in reduced birth weight and smaller head size (a measure of brain
development). The chance of delivering a low birth weight baby is higher if exposure to stress, daily

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hassles in particular, occurs during the first 3 months of pregnancy. Low birth weigh and preeclampsia.
have been found to be complications from all types of stress during pregnancy. This relationship shows
that the effects of stress during pregnancy lead to maternal problems that will affect the child
throughout life. It is important however to note that the utilization of physical exercise such as yoga can
help offset the negative effects of prenatal stress.
A variety of issues occur during pregnancy that effect infants. I chose to research the topic of
the effects of prenatal stress because I think this is something that can be greatly prevented. In this
psychology class we have learned about emotions and events that come up in life which trigger certain
responses either learned or innate. Stress is a great example of this because stress can be a direct
response to certain events. The idea that our outlook on life and attitude towards situations that arise
shows that we can to a certain extent take control of our reactions. By choosing to let little disturbances
go and not stress over them we can greatly reduce the negative impact stress may have on our child.
While this is not true all the time because physiological responses occur releasing stress hormones
which we do not have control over. A way to find positivity and shed light on a stressful situation may
help reduce the feeling of stress. This would therefore weaken the effects of stress felt by the mother
occurring on an infant. If mothers are told the negative aspects of stress on their health as well as their
child's health I think that a step towards a solution would be made.
As a nutrition major I am a huge proponent of living a happy and healthy life. This is another
reason that led me to this research topic. I think that everyone should have an equal opportunity to
chose to live a healthy life. If we undergo stress while pregnant we are putting our child at a
disadvantage since they may suffer from various health issues as a result from this. This is especially
unfair to the child since they are not in control and have no choice in the situation they are born into or
the levels of stress their mothers felt. The fetus does not voluntarily cause the mother stress, that comes
much later when they do not call to say they made it to school safely or come home past curfew in high

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school. Many mothers are extremely conscious of their diet, exercise, and amount of sleep received
during pregnancy as these are much more common factors regarding a healthy life to hear about,
because of this I think it is very important for all mothers to also be educated of the effects their
emotions have on their child.
As my post grad life approaches I have been faced with many questions about what I would like
to make a career in. This leads me to another reason why this topic pertains to my life. While taking
classes at Cal Poly I have learned so much about the world of nutrition. One thing that stuck with me
was the benefits of breast feeding over formula. A goal I have is to become a IBCLC or a International
Board Certified Lactation Consultant. With this certification I would love to work in areas of the
country and even world where there is limited access to knowledge on the benefits of breastfeeding and
encourage and help mothers along with the process. There are many problems that exist in this area of
nutrition, in America many issues arise with teen pregnancies because mothers are uneducated, scared,
and often pressured into formula use by significant others or hospitals who receive endorsements by
formula companies. The topic of stress and pregnancy comes into play during these situations and
therefore gives me a way to use the information I learned from this research assignment to another
aspect of my life and future career. I have obtained a better grasp on the issue of stress during
pregnancy and the challenges it forces upon the infant. With this I can help the mothers in stressful
situations by educating them on all their options and the risks that enduring stressful situations places
on them as well as their infant.
As you may have gathered the topic of pregnancy is very interesting and engaging to me. I
enjoyed learning a bit more about the world of pregnancy through this class. The background I gained
regarding the psychological aspects of pregnancy and development will be a great addition to my
knowledge on nutrition and pregnancy. In order to live a healthy and happy life I believe you need a
balance of these two things. With a positive psychological outlook and some insightful knowledge on

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what is actually happening with psychological development from womb to tomb a mother has the
power to make educated decisions. These decisions are made on things that will affect her and her child
both currently and throughout life.
These are just a few reasons why I chose this topic and how I plan on making the information I
took away from this assignment and class applicable in my life and upcoming career. If given the
opportunity to share my knowledge about this topic with others and help make a difference in the lives
of many mothers and children, I can make a step towards stopping issues faced by many children that
were in the womb of a mother undergoing some kind of stressful situation.

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1. AleksandraA.Staneva,BA(Hons),MresPsychology(PhDScholar),FionaBogossian,RN,
RM,PhD(AssociateProfessorandDirectorofResearchHigherDegrees),(2015)The
experienceofpsychologicaldistress,depression,andanxietyduringpregnancy:Ameta
synthesisofqualitativeresearch,Midwifery.
2. SilviaHoirischClapauch,BenjaminBrenner,AntonioEgidioNardi,(2015)Adverseobstetric
andneonataloutcomesinwomenwithmentaldisorders,Thrombosisresearch6063.
3. SuzanneKing,QF2011:aprotocoltostudytheeffectsoftheQueenslandfloodonpregnant
women,theirpregnancies,andtheirchildren'searlydevelopment(2015)BiomedCentral15:109
4. QinxianJiang,ZhengguoWu,LiZhou,JenaeDunlop,PeijieChen,(2015)EffectsofYoga
Interventionduringpregnancy:Areviewforcurrentstatus,ThiemeMedicalPublishers,
AmericanJournal05405502
5. E.J.H.Muldera,P.G.RoblesdeMedinaa,A.C.Huizinkb,(2002)Prenatal maternal stress:
effects on pregnancy and the (unborn) child, Early Human Development, Elsiever
6. Anne-Marie Turcotte-Tremblay, Robert Lim,David P. Laplante, Lester Kobzik, Alain Brunet,
and Suzanne King, (2014) Prenatal Maternal Stress Predicts Childhood Asthma in Girls: Project
Ice Storm, Hindawi Publishing Corporation BioMed Research International Volume 2014,
Article ID 201717, 10 pages.
7. Eunjeong Kim, HyeSook Park , Yun-Chul Hong, Mina Ha, Yangho Kim, Bo-Eun Lee, and EunHee Ha, (2015) Effect of maternal job strain during pregnancy on infant neurodevelopment by
gender at 6 and 12 months: Mothers and Childrens Environmental Health (MOCEH) study,
nnals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 27:8 DOI 10.1186
8. http://www.marchofdimes.org/pregnancy/stress-and-pregnancy.aspx
9. http://www.beginbeforebirth.org/the-pregnancy/emotional-state