Women Who Give Birth In These Seasons Are Less Likely To Suffer From Postpartum Depression; Study Finds

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Often dismissed as baby blues by the mother herself as well as those around her, postpartum depression is a real thing and problem that should not be ignored. This seemingly harmless mood swing can last from weeks to months and affects 1 in 7 women, according to the American Psychological Association (1).

Although the causes of postpartum depression (PPD) are many and range from physical changes to emotional issues a mother goes through post-childbirth (2), one significant research has concluded that the season her baby is born in can also be a possible cause behind this condition.

A study conducted by Dr. Jie Zhou and his team from Brigham & Woman’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, has found that women who gave birth during the fall or summer months are more likely to suffer from PPD (3).

The team came to this conclusion after analyzing the medical records of over 20,000 women who had given birth to their babies between June 2015 and August 2017, making it the latest discovery in this regard.

In fact, Dr. Zhou’s team found out that the impact of the season in the likelihood of PPD was so profound that 4.1% of the women could not help but feel depressed. Conversely, women who gave birth during winter or spring were less likely to suffer from PPD.

Why and how a season can add to postpartum depression?

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While the study has not been able to establish a concrete relation that can definitively prove why this happens, Dr. Zhou attributes it to the exposure to the sun as well as the vitamin D as the likely cause of depression among new mothers during the period of May to November.

On the other side of the fence, Dr. Zhou also stated that giving birth during the holiday season has a positive impact on a new mom as she feels supported and surrounded by family members who bring about positive reinforcement during this season. This is why mommies who give birth during this time are less likely to suffer from PPD.

Image: Shutterstock

Although the findings make sense, one can also call them contradictory as people, including women, are also most likely to suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder during the winter months. That said, the nature of both PPD and Seasonal Affective Disorder is such that it can strike any time of the year.

The aim of this study, as well as its finding, is not to advocate parents to plan pregnancy as per the seasons; rather it is to help women identify the plausible causes and symptoms of PPD so that they can manage it better.

On a related note, another study also found out that the use of epidural during childbirth could lower the chances of PPD; while women who did not use it were at higher risk of getting this condition (4).

According to Postpartum Progress, around 50% of women with PPD go undiagnosed, which makes knowing the causes and symptoms of this condition absolutely vital (5).

Common symptoms that can help a woman identify if she’s suffering from PPD or not include severe mood swings, sadness, crying, poor concentration, decreased appetite, sleeping troubles and more.

We hope that these findings will help women understand the nature and gravity of PPD so that they can get help in time, and prevent the worse from happening.

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