Research indicates prenatal screening may reduce post partum depression for women with eating disorders

A study recently published in the Journal of Women’s Health may provide some insight into the depression 1 in 10 women experience during their pregnancy or after they have given birth.  Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine studied 158 women who were pregnant or postpartum, and found that one-third had a history of eating disorders.  Many of these women also had a history of abuse.

The researchers believe this history of eating disorders may play a significant role in the depression these women face during or after their pregnancy.   The lead author of the study, Samantha Meltzer-Brody, MD, said that the study demonstrates a great need for prenatal psychiatric screenings.  “The message we need to get out is that these things are incredibly common and routine screenings need to occur,” said Dr. Meltzer-Brody. “The prevalence of abuse and eating disorder histories may be much higher than people appreciate.”

Though pregnancy is a “vulnerable time for women,” as Dr. Meltzer-Brody put it, there is a silver-lining to this vulnerable period:  pregnancy is also a time when women are quite likely to make changes or go to treatment, precisely because the life of their child depends upon it.

Source: UNC School of Medicine