母亲患抑郁症影响儿童健康
http://www.100md.com
2000年11月20日
BOSTON (Reuters Health) - Mothers who are depressed are more likely to smoke around their youngsters and less likely to place their children in car seats or give them vitamins, results of a study indicate.
The findings bolster the evidence that postpartum depression should not be dismissed as merely a bad case of baby blues, according to researchers who presented their report at the American Public Health Association meeting here.
``Many studies have shown that mothers who are depressed can adversely affect the development of their child, including reading ability and motor skills. We wanted to see if maternal depression affects the child's health as well,'' said lead investigator Dr. Jenn A. Leiferman of the Carolina Population Center at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
``Our goal is to try to get physicians to be more aware about depression and to get screening for depression to be a standard practice in doctors' offices,'' Leiferman told Reuters Health.
The study involved 7,303 women in the US who were assessed for depression 18 months after they had given birth to a child, and again 18 months after the initial interview.
Of the women who were depressed at both interviews, about one-quarter smoked, did not use child car seats or give vitamins. Of the nondepressed women, about 15% smoked, did not use car seats or give vitamins.
Among study participants, about 38% of black women were depressed compared with 21% of white women, the report indicates.
``We found that women who were chronically depressed throughout the child's developing years do have a negative affect on the child's health,'' Leiferman explained.
``What we cannot tell from these data is what other factors might account for these differences--like culture, environment or discrimination,'' Leiferman said. Doctors need to ask women about depression and take their symptoms seriously, Leiferman added., 百拇医药
The findings bolster the evidence that postpartum depression should not be dismissed as merely a bad case of baby blues, according to researchers who presented their report at the American Public Health Association meeting here.
``Many studies have shown that mothers who are depressed can adversely affect the development of their child, including reading ability and motor skills. We wanted to see if maternal depression affects the child's health as well,'' said lead investigator Dr. Jenn A. Leiferman of the Carolina Population Center at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
``Our goal is to try to get physicians to be more aware about depression and to get screening for depression to be a standard practice in doctors' offices,'' Leiferman told Reuters Health.
The study involved 7,303 women in the US who were assessed for depression 18 months after they had given birth to a child, and again 18 months after the initial interview.
Of the women who were depressed at both interviews, about one-quarter smoked, did not use child car seats or give vitamins. Of the nondepressed women, about 15% smoked, did not use car seats or give vitamins.
Among study participants, about 38% of black women were depressed compared with 21% of white women, the report indicates.
``We found that women who were chronically depressed throughout the child's developing years do have a negative affect on the child's health,'' Leiferman explained.
``What we cannot tell from these data is what other factors might account for these differences--like culture, environment or discrimination,'' Leiferman said. Doctors need to ask women about depression and take their symptoms seriously, Leiferman added., 百拇医药
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