BACKGROUND: There is accumulating evidence for a link between maternal stress during pregnancy and later behavioural and emotional problems in children. Little research has examined other developmental outcomes. AIM: To determine the effect of maternal stress during pregnancy on offspring language ability in middle childhood. STUDY DESIGN: Longitudinal pregnancy cohort-study. SUBJECTS: A total of 2900 mothers were recruited prior to the 18th week of pregnancy, delivering 2868 live births. The language ability of just under half of the offspring cohort (n=1309; 45.6% of original sample) was assessed in middle childhood (Mean age=10;7, Standard deviation=0;2, range: 9;5-11;11). OUTCOME MEASURES: Language ability was measured using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R). The main predictor variable was the frequency of 10 typically 'stressful' life events experienced by mothers during early and/or late pregnancy. Children were allocated to four groups according to whether they were exposed to high maternal stress (>or=2 life events) during early pregnancy only, late pregnancy only, both, or neither. RESULTS: Mixed-effects regression analyses revealed no association between the maternal experience of two or more stressful life events at any time-point during pregnancy and PPVT-R scores. Repeating the regression analyses with more lenient (>or=1 life events) or strict (>or=3 life events) thresholds for defining high-levels of maternal stress did not alter the pattern of findings. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal experience of typically stressful life events during pregnancy has a negligible effect on vocabulary development to middle childhood. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
BACKGROUND: There is accumulating evidence for a link between maternal stress during pregnancy and later behavioural and emotional problems in children. Little research has examined other developmental outcomes. AIM: To determine the effect of maternal stress during pregnancy on offspring language ability in middle childhood. STUDY DESIGN: Longitudinal pregnancy cohort-study. SUBJECTS: A total of 2900 mothers were recruited prior to the 18th week of pregnancy, delivering 2868 live births. The language ability of just under half of the offspring cohort (n=1309; 45.6% of original sample) was assessed in middle childhood (Mean age=10;7, Standard deviation=0;2, range: 9;5-11;11). OUTCOME MEASURES: Language ability was measured using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R). The main predictor variable was the frequency of 10 typically 'stressful' life events experienced by mothers during early and/or late pregnancy. Children were allocated to four groups according to whether they were exposed to high maternal stress (>or=2 life events) during early pregnancy only, late pregnancy only, both, or neither. RESULTS: Mixed-effects regression analyses revealed no association between the maternal experience of two or more stressful life events at any time-point during pregnancy and PPVT-R scores. Repeating the regression analyses with more lenient (>or=1 life events) or strict (>or=3 life events) thresholds for defining high-levels of maternal stress did not alter the pattern of findings. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal experience of typically stressful life events during pregnancy has a negligible effect on vocabulary development to middle childhood. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors: Yonit K Stoch; Cori J Williams; Joanna Granich; Anna M Hunt; Lou I Landau; John P Newnham; Andrew J O Whitehouse Journal: J Autism Dev Disord Date: 2012-12
Authors: Silvana Andréa Molina Lima; Regina Paolucci El Dib; Meline Rossetto Kron Rodrigues; Guilherme Augusto Rago Ferraz; Ana Claudia Molina; Carlos Alberto Pilan Neto; Marcelo Aparecido Ferraz de Lima; Marilza Vieira Cunha Rudge Journal: PLoS One Date: 2018-07-26 Impact factor: 3.240