Excessive infant crying doubles the risk of mood and behavioral problems at age 5: evidence for mediation by maternal characteristics.

The onset of behavioral problems starts in early life. This study examined whether excessive infant crying (maternal ratings) is a determinant of emotional and behavioral problems at age 5-6 years. In the Amsterdam Born Children and their Development (ABCD) study, a large prospective, observational, population-based multiethnic birth cohort, excessive infant crying (crying for three or more hours per 24 h day over the past week) during the 13th week after birth (range 11-25 weeks, SD 2 weeks), maternal burden of infant care and maternal aggressive behavior (either angry speaking, or physical aggression) was assessed using a questionnaire.

Early life influences on cognition, behavior, and emotion in humans: from birth to age 20.

The long-lasting effects of fetal exposure to early life influences (ELI) such as maternal anxiety, stress, and micronutrient deficiencies as well as mediating and moderating factors are quite well established in animal studies, but remain unclear in humans. Here, we report about effects on cognition, behavior, and emotion in offspring aged 5-20 years old in two prospective longitudinal birth cohorts.

Maternal long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid status during early pregnancy and children's risk of problem behavior at age 5-6 years.

Objective: To prospectively investigate the association between maternal long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCPUFA) status and ratio during pregnancy and children's risk of problem behavior at 5 years of age.

Study Design: Maternal LCPUFA status in plasma phospholipids during pregnancy (M = 13.3, SD = 3 weeks) was available for 4336 women.

Maternal hypothyroxinemia in early pregnancy predicts reduced performance in reaction time tests in 5- to 6-year-old offspring.

Context: Overt hypothyroidism in pregnant women is associated with poorer neurodevelopment in their children. Findings from studies investigating the effect of less severe impairments in the maternal thyroid function on cognitive functioning in offspring are difficult to interpret for a number of reasons, including lack of objective cognitive tests, preschool age at assessment, and small sample sizes.

Objective: We aimed to assess the effect of the maternal thyroid status in early pregnancy on their offspring's cognitive performance at 5 to 6 years of age.

Psychosocial stress during pregnancy is related to adverse birth outcomes: results from a large multi-ethnic community-based birth cohort.

Background: Prevalence rates of psychosocial stress during pregnancy are substantial. Evidence for associations between psychosocial stress and birth outcomes is inconsistent. This study aims to identify and characterize different clusters of pregnant women, each with a distinct pattern of psychosocial stress, and investigate whether birth outcomes differ between these clusters.

Caffeine intake during pregnancy and risk of problem behavior in 5- to 6-year-old children.

Background And Objective: Human studies that have investigated the association between caffeine intake during pregnancy and offspring's behavioral outcomes are scant and inconclusive. We prospectively investigated the association between maternal caffeine intake during pregnancy and children's problem behavior at age 5 to 6 years. Mediation by fetal growth restriction and gestational age as well as effect modification by the child's gender and maternal smoking was tested.

High levels of antenatal maternal anxiety are associated with altered cognitive control in five-year-old children.

This longitudinal prospective study examined the relation between maternal anxiety during pregnancy and specific aspects of children's cognitive functioning at age five. Antenatal maternal state-anxiety was measured around the 16th week of pregnancy. Children's neurocognitive functioning was examined using a simple reaction time (RT) task, and a choice RT task.