YOGA ALLEVIATES POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION

Recently a study (conducted at the University of California, Irvine) suggesting that postpartum depression is the result of hormonal imbalances has made news. Postpartum depression is a common condition affecting women in the days after childbirth. It has also been suggested that Yoga potentially holds the key to alleviating this condition. Here is why.

Stress induced hormone release is considered normal when the brain discharges minute amounts of Corticotropin-releasing hormone, or CRH, to help the body cope with the stress. During pregnancy, however, the brain could potentially release copious quantities of CRH to help the mother during labor and thereafter drastically reduce the production of this hormone by contrast. This sudden rise and fall of hormonal levels can cause the endocrine system to behave abnormally and create havoc for the mother, during the postnatal phase.

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TAKING FISH OIL SUPPLEMENTS IN LATE PREGNANCY BOOSTS BABY'S BRAINPOWER, STUDY FINDS

An Australian study published in the Dec. 21, 2006 edition of the online journal Archives of Disease in Childhood found that women who take high doses of fish oil supplements in the second half of pregnancy give birth to children with greater coordination and increased brainpower later in life.

Researchers from the University of Western Australia recruited 98 pregnant women who did not smoke and ate fish no more than twice per week. The researchers gave one group of women 4g of daily fish oil supplements starting at 20 weeks of pregnancy, while the second group was given daily 4g supplements of olive oil from 20 weeks on.

When the women's children were 2.5 years old, the researchers administered growth and development tests.

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MORE THAN JUST BABY BLUES: HOW POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION ARISES AND HOW IT COULD BE PREVENTED

Within the first week after giving birth, up to 70 percent of all women experience symptoms of the baby blues. While most women recover quickly, up to 13 percent of all new mothers suffer from symptoms of a clinical-level postpartum depression.

Postpartum depression is defined as a major depressive episode starting within 4 weeks after delivery and is a significant public health problem. Postpartum blues represents a major risk factor for developing postpartum depression and severe postpartum blues symptoms can be viewed as a prodromal stage for postpartum depression.

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