Maternal psychological distress and temperament traits in children from infancy to late childhood.

Background: Maternal psychological distress during pregnancy is associated with infant temperament. Whether associations persist into late childhood, whether maternal distress is associated with temperament change from infancy to late childhood, whether associations are independent of maternal concurrent distress, and whether maternal distress has sensitive exposure periods on child temperament remain unclear.

Methods: Our study includes mother-child dyads from Finnish, prospective Prediction and Prevention of Preeclampsia and Intrauterine Growth Restriction study.

Maternal Antenatal Depression Is Associated With Metabolic Alterations That Predict Birth Outcomes and Child Neurodevelopment and Mental Health.

Background: Evidence regarding metabolic alterations associated with maternal antenatal depression (AD) is limited, and their role as potential biomarkers that improve the prediction of AD and adverse childbirth, neurodevelopmental, and mental health outcomes remains unexplored.

Methods: In a cohort of 331 mother-child dyads, we studied associations between AD (a history of medical register diagnoses and/or a Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale score during pregnancy ≥ 20) and 95 metabolic measures analyzed 3 times during pregnancy. We tested whether the AD-related metabolic measures increased variance explained in AD over its risk factors and in childbirth, neurodevelopmental, and mental health outcomes over AD.

Serial Diurnal Salivary Cortisol Profiles in 667 Pregnant Women-Association With Cardiometabolic Complications.

Context: Maternal obesity, hypertensive pregnancy disorders, and gestational diabetes (GDM) are linked to an increased risk of negative offspring health outcomes. This association may be mediated by maternal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis) activity, resulting in elevated maternal cortisol levels and fetal exposure, but evidence remains scarce.

Objective: We (1) examined maternal diurnal cortisol profiles longitudinally across gestation, and (2) explored associations with maternal cardiometabolic complications.

Associations of polymetabolic risk of high maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index with pregnancy complications, birth outcomes, and early childhood neurodevelopment: findings from two pregnancy cohorts.

Background: A substantial proportion of maternal pregnancy complications, adverse birth outcomes and neurodevelopmental delay in children may be attributable to high maternal pre-pregnancy Body Mass Index (BMI). However, BMI alone is insufficient for the identification of all at-risk mothers and children as many women with non-obesity(< 30 kg/m) or normal weight(18.5-24.

Early childhood multiple or persistent regulatory problems and diurnal salivary cortisol in young adulthood.

Background: Early childhood multiple or persistent regulatory problems (RPs; crying, sleeping, or feeding problems) have been associated with a risk of behavioural problems in young adulthood. It has been suggested that this may be due to the possible influence of early RPs on the functioning of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. However, associations between early RPs and HPA-axis activity in young adulthood remain unexplored.