Postpartum Depression and Nutrition

While so many are off in the corner trying to see how they can profit from this troubling situation for many women, the obvious is being clearly overlooked.

The new study just being reported focuses on the use of some specific amino acids that effect thyroid function.

Skipping proper thyroid function testing so rampant in today's medical modeling its no wonder this old and well known fact still isn't getting just the exposure it needs.

Lineal thinking still haunts the hallowed halls of mainstream medicine.

It may be at least 15 years since I wrote my first blog post about the nutritional issues and hormonal needs in women who have just delivered a baby.

The pill doesn't help but nutrition surely will.

And then there is The Mood Cure, Julia Ross' well documented work that utilizes such amino acids as tryptophan and tyrosine along with a nutritionally sound food plant to help you rebalance your moods.

Now a researcher comes along an wants ot make a " new" product when the ingredients are already available.  And this product will probably cost three times what it should be.

Why not explain to women who are pregnant how important sound nutrition is and along with a well functioning thyroid gland.

If you refer to the previous post you'll be able to learn about how the pill depletes important nutrition.  Having many children also depletes nutrition and has the tendency to cause thyroid imbalance. 

I guess Brooke Shields missed this when she was arguing with Tom Cruise over nutrition and just how important it is in pregnancy and afterward to help your mood remain intact.

You can get all of these supplements now at a quality health food store, or you may order them from our organization.

This certainly beats SSRIs

Postnatal depression prevented with counselling

I suppose that Brooke Shields found it much easier to take a pill that may have deleterious effects on her health rather than look at her nutritional status and food plan, when she has had to face depression after child birth.

I suppose Tom Cruise might find this article enlightening in light of his more natural approach to health in pregnancy.

Tom has an edge when he sides for nutritional supplements, but coupled with counselling, things might have just gotten a lot easier for mothers-in-waiting.

Maybe US obstetricians need to update their thinking too.

Postnatal depression can be treated, prevented
Thu Jan 15, 2009
PARIS (AFP) – Many women struggling with the post-baby blues may expect only a hug or a couple of pills, but in new studies published on Friday, doctors say counselling can not only treat this risky condition but prevent it, too.

Professional counsellors can reduce rates of postnatal depression by 40 percent, while support from fellow mothers can reduce the risk of developing this dangerous disorder by half, they say.

In one paper, a team led by Jane Morrell of the University of Sheffield, northern England, divided more than 4,000 new mothers into three groups.

In the first two groups, the volunteers each received a weekly session of psychological counselling over eight weeks, using either of two techniques.

The so-called "cognitive behaviour approach" focuses on unhelpful behaviour patterns and thoughts in the mother, and helps overcome them by pointing out that these reflexes are a common part of the post-natal experience.

The "person-centered approach" emphasizes empathy and unconditional support for the mother's feelings.

The third group was a "control" group of women who received standard health care treatment.

Women who were diagnosed with depression six weeks after giving birth were 40 percent less likely to have the same symptoms six months later if they had either form of counselling, the investigators found.

The second trial, likewise published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), identified 701 pregnant women in Ontario, Canada, who were estimated to be at risk of developing postnatal depression.

Half of the group were given standard post-natal care while the other half were given telephone support by a peer volunteer -- a woman with first-hand knowledge of post-baby blues.

Getting this peer support halved the risk of depression at 12 weeks after birth, the report said.

"These trials add to the growing evidence that postnatal depression can be effectively treated and possibly prevented," said lead researcher Cindy-Lee Dennis of the University of Toronto.

The barriers to treatment, however, remain high, she said.

Women are often unaware of the syndrome and are apt to deny or minimise its symptoms. And even when they do feel they need help, they may be unaware of treatment options or unwilling to reveal emotional distress.

"They fear being labelled mentally ill, having their children taken away, or being perceived as not fulfilling their maternal role," she said.

Postnatal depression affects one in eight women in diverse cultures around the world, and is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality, usually through suicide.

The generally short-term but devastating mental disorder can also have a serious impact on infants and children, affecting cognitive, emotional and social development.

Copyright © 2009 Agence France Presse. All rights reserved.

Pregnancy and Nutrition

We take a very strong stand against the use of anti-depressants in pregnancy for very good scientific reason. We believe nutrition is the underlying foundation for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby.

This of course starts with a healthy mother and a health father.

We believe that birth control pills, fast food, microwaved food, soy-craziness, low fat mania and an overload of over processed foods, fluoridated water and the excessive use of artificial sweeteners contribute to the many problems we see today.
We do support the use of B vitamins during pregnancy (like our biosupplemente naturelle) serve to prevent serious birth defects like Spina Bifida. We also support the use of real food and whole food along with an adequate intake of iodine to protect the mother and the developing fetus.

We believe that low iodine is implicated in post partum maternal health issues and also in the cases of Trisomy 21 or Down Syndrome.

In areas where low selenium levels are present in food, iodine is not sufficiently metabolized.

Since SSRIs' contain fluoride which blocks the uptake of iodine by the thyroid, matters are only worsened. This may be a direct correlation to those cases where a mother has killed her child.

Iodine levels and thyroid hormones in healthy pregnant women and birth weight of their offspring.

Study Abstract: The fetus is the most vulnerable to severe iodine deficiency and hypothyroidism during pregnancy. The effects of mild iodine deficiency and subclinical hypothyroidism are poorly known. The present study assesses the association between thyroid hormones and urinary iodine concentration (UIC) in healthy pregnant women and the birth weight of their children.

Methods: 657 pregnant women were recruited in Sabadell and followed until delivery. The association between thyroid hormones during the first trimester, UIC during the first and third trimesters and birth weight was studied in 557, 251 and 528 mother-newborn pairs, respectively, using linear and logistic regression models adjusted for potential confounders. Only 239 women had all data available (thyroid function and UIC at first and at third trimesters). Six percent of newborns were classified as SGA.

Results: The median UIC was 95mug/L and 104mug/L during the first and third trimesters, respectively. Women with third trimester UICs between 100mug/L and 149mug/L had lower risk of having a SGA newborn than women with UICs below 50mug/L (adjusted OR (95%CI): 0.15 (0.03-0.76). There was no significant reduction in SGA among mothers with higher UICs. Lower free T4 and higher TSH levels during the first trimester were not associated with birth weight or SGA. Nevertheless, analysis were repeated including only those women with all data available, and high TSH levels become statistically significantly associated with lower birth weight and higher risk of SGA.

Conclusions: The present study suggests that iodine status during pregnancy may be related to prenatal growth in healthy women.

Alvarez-Pedrerol M, Guxens M, Mendez M, Canet Y, Martorell R, Espada M, Plana E, Rebagliato M, Sunyer J. Iodine levels and thyroid hormones in healthy pregnant women and birth weight of their offspring. Eur J Endocrinol. 2008 December.
Centre for Research in Environmental Epidemiology, Barcelona, 08003, Spain

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Related posts from Natural Health News

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2008/11/ssri-drugs-in-pregnancy-linked-to-heart.html

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2008/05/nutrition-and-preventing-post-partum.html

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2008/03/fluoride-is-not-cure-for-mothers-or.html

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2006/11/diabetes-epidemic-by-prescription.html

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/2008/09/birth-control-pill-risk-takes-note-by.html