Higher Prenatal Anxiety Predicts Lower Neonatal Hair Cortisol
February 2024
in “
Psychoneuroendocrinology
”
Studysummary This study observed that higher anxiety levels in pregnant individuals are negatively correlated with neonatal hair cortisol, suggesting that increased anxiety during pregnancy may affect fetal cortisol accumulation, which is important for fetal development and associated with birth outcomes and cognitive function.
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The study investigated the relationship between prenatal anxiety and neonatal hair cortisol levels, using data from 104 pregnant individuals and their neonates. Anxiety was measured each trimester with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Pregnancy Related Anxiety Scale. Results showed that higher levels of both general and pregnancy-specific anxiety were negatively correlated with neonatal hair cortisol, particularly in the second trimester. This suggests that increased prenatal anxiety is associated with lower fetal cortisol levels, which could lead to poor birth outcomes and long-term developmental issues.
