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Using a Murine Model of Psychosocial Stress in Pregnancy as a Translationally Relevant Paradigm for Psychiatric Disorders in Mothers and Infants
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Prenatal maternal bereavement and risk of eating disorders in infants and toddlers: a population-based cohort study

Xiujuan Su1,2, Beibei Xu3, Hong Liang4

  • 1Department of Women's and Children's Health Care, Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200040, PR China. baolei06@163.com.

BMC Psychiatry
|September 26, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Maternal bereavement during pregnancy increases the risk of eating disorders (ED) in infants and toddlers. This risk is particularly elevated for boys exposed to stress in the six months before conception.

Area of Science:

  • Perinatal Psychiatry
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Pediatric Nutrition

Background:

  • Prenatal stress is linked to neuropsychiatric conditions, but its impact on early-onset eating disorders (ED) is unclear.
  • Infants and toddlers with feeding or eating disorders face higher risks of later-life psychiatric conditions.
  • Maternal bereavement during pregnancy represents a significant source of prenatal stress.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between prenatal stress from maternal bereavement and the risk of developing eating disorders (ED) in infants and toddlers.
  • To identify potential sensitive periods of prenatal stress exposure related to ED development.

Main Methods:

  • A large population-based cohort study in Denmark and Sweden (over 5 million children).
  • Children were classified as exposed if their mothers experienced bereavement one year before or during pregnancy.
  • Poisson regression models analyzed the incidence rate ratio (IRR) of ED diagnoses up to age 3.

Main Results:

  • A total of 9,403 eating disorder (ED) cases were identified.
  • Offspring of mothers bereaved by the loss of a close family member (child or spouse) within six months pre-pregnancy showed a 1.63 times higher risk of ED.
  • This association was significant for boys (IRR: 2.21) but not for girls (IRR: 1.18).

Conclusions:

  • Prenatal stress due to maternal bereavement is associated with an increased risk of eating disorders (ED) in infants and toddlers.
  • The period of six months before conception appears to be a critical window for this risk, especially in male infants.
  • Further research is needed to elucidate the underlying mechanisms connecting early life stress and ED etiology.
Abstract

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