The New York Times (3/5, Belluck ) reports a new study sheds light on postpartum depression, which “affects about one in every seven women who give birth, but little is known about what happens in the brains of pregnant women who experience it.” Researchers found that “women with symptoms of depression in the first month after giving birth also had increases in the volume of their amygdala.” In addition, “women who rated their childbirth experience as difficult or stressful – a perception that is often associated with postpartum depression – also showed increases in the volume of the hippocampus, a brain area that helps regulate emotions.” The study is part of a “growing body of research that has found that certain brain networks, especially those involved in social and emotional processing, shrink during pregnancy, possibly undergoing a fine-tuning process in preparation for parenting.” The study was published in Science Advances.
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— “The New York Times (requires login and subscription)