International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Moderate stress during pregnancy could boost foetal brain development, new research has found.

Researchers from the John Hopkins University in Maryland, US, surveyed 112 pregnant women in the US three times during their third trimester, recording their stress levels and foetal movements throughout gestation.

They found that women with higher stress levels had foetuses that were more active in the womb.

After birth, these babies scored higher on a test on brain maturation, however, they were found to be more irritable.

The more active foetuses also had better control of their own body movements after birth too, the study found.

Cortisol, which is the hormone related to stress, contributes to brain maturation and could explain the result of the study, which was published in child health journal, Child Development.

Research released last month showed that experiencing stress during pregnancy could lead to a higher risk of asthma.

Infants born to mothers who were highly-stressed during pregnancy had differences in their immune function markers in cord blood, which could be associated with the chances of developing asthma later in life, according to researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston.

Posted by David Smith