During the recently held meeting of the Society for Neuroscience, the world’s largest source of news about brain science and health, experts from around the world confirmed that pregnancy changes the human brain in significant ways. This in turn leads to the rise of maternal mental health conditions among both pregnant women and new mothers.
The experts pointed out that pregnancy changes the brain’s neural mechanisms, which lead to underlying adaptive changes and perinatal mental illnesses. According to research, nearly 70 per cent of women experience symptoms of perinatal depression, like sadness, lack of interest, anxiety, mood disturbances, etc. Of these, 20 per cent women may develop more severe and persistent mental health issues like postpartum depression, clinical depression, etc.
The researchers also pointed out that roughly, 3.5 million women give birth in the United States each year. Of them, approximately 20 per cent are impacted by mental health conditions which can have profound and long-term impacts on their own health, as well as the health of their babies, families and society.