Prenatal Maternal Stress in Context: Maternal Stress Physiology, Immunology, Neuroendocrinology, Nutrition and Infant Development

TY - CHAP

T1 - Prenatal Maternal Stress in Context

T2 - Maternal Stress Physiology, Immunology, Neuroendocrinology, Nutrition and Infant Development

AU - Barrett, Emily S.

AU - Sefair, Ana Vallejo

AU - O’Connor, Thomas G.

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © Springer International Publishing AG 2017.

PY - 2017

Y1 - 2017

N2 - Just as maternal diet during pregnancy may program fetal development, so may prenatal stress. Stress (and related constructs such anxiety, trauma, depression, stressful life events, and pregnancy-related distress) can cause changes in the pregnant woman’s neuroendocrine and immune systems, which may alter fetal/child development. Rather than acting as a barrier, the placenta is semi-permeable to such alterations in maternal physiology, and fetal developmental trajectories may be shaped accordingly. A large literature has examined maternal stress in relation to infant outcomes ranging from growth and metabolism to stress reactivity to neurodevelopment. Animal models suggest that the effects of stress on the developing offspring are profound (and largely mediated through glucocorticoid pathways), but the translation from animal studies to human development is uncertain. Epidemiological studies offer further support for connections between prenatal stress and infant outcomes, but they are often confounded by factors including socioeconomic status, diet, and environmental exposures, and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Future research is needed that adopts a more multidisciplinary approach to jointly consider the effects of prenatal stress and nutrition on child health and development.

AB - Just as maternal diet during pregnancy may program fetal development, so may prenatal stress. Stress (and related constructs such anxiety, trauma, depression, stressful life events, and pregnancy-related distress) can cause changes in the pregnant woman’s neuroendocrine and immune systems, which may alter fetal/child development. Rather than acting as a barrier, the placenta is semi-permeable to such alterations in maternal physiology, and fetal developmental trajectories may be shaped accordingly. A large literature has examined maternal stress in relation to infant outcomes ranging from growth and metabolism to stress reactivity to neurodevelopment. Animal models suggest that the effects of stress on the developing offspring are profound (and largely mediated through glucocorticoid pathways), but the translation from animal studies to human development is uncertain. Epidemiological studies offer further support for connections between prenatal stress and infant outcomes, but they are often confounded by factors including socioeconomic status, diet, and environmental exposures, and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Future research is needed that adopts a more multidisciplinary approach to jointly consider the effects of prenatal stress and nutrition on child health and development.

KW - Anxiety

KW - Fetal programming

KW - HPA axis

KW - Immune function

KW - Infant development

KW - Neurodevelopment

KW - Pregnancy

KW - Prenatal stress

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85053790095&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85053790095&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1007/978-3-319-60289-9_1

DO - 10.1007/978-3-319-60289-9_1

M3 - Chapter

T3 - Nutrition and Health (United Kingdom)

SP - 3

EP - 13

BT - Nutrition and Health (United Kingdom)

PB - Palgrave Macmillan

ER -