Effects of pre- and postnatal maternal stress on infant temperament and autonomic nervous system reactivity and regulation in a diverse, low-income population

Abstract

We examined the prospective associations of objective and subjective measures of stress during pregnancy with infant stress reactivity and regulation, an early-life predictor of psychopathology. In a racially and ethnically diverse low-income sample of 151 mother-infant dyads, maternal reports of stressful life events (SLE) and perceived stress (PS) were collected serially over gestation and the early postpartum period. Infant reactivity and regulation at 6-months of age was assessed via maternal report of temperament (negativity, surgency and regulation) and infant parasympathetic nervous system physiology (respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA)) during the Still Face Paradigm. Regression models predicting infant temperament showed higher maternal prenatal PS predicted lower surgency and self-regulation but not negativity. Regression models predicting infant physiology showed higher numbers of SLE during gestation predicted greater RSA reactivity and weaker recovery. Tests of interactions revealed SLE predicted RSA reactivity only at moderate-to-high levels of PS. Thus, findings suggest objective and subjective measures of maternal prenatal stress uniquely predict infant behavior and physiology, adjusting for key pre- and postnatal covariates, and advance the limited evidence for such prenatal programming within high-risk populations. Assessing multiple levels of maternal stress and offspring stress reactivity and regulation provides a richer picture of intergenerational transmission of adversity.

Association between prenatal psychological stress and oxidative stress during pregnancy

“…Third, many associations were examined, thus increasing the likelihood of chance associations. However, since previous associations between family death, anxiety, depression, and oxidative stress have been observed in non‐pregnant populations, it is unlikely that these results occurred by chance. In addition, TIDES has not yet extracted detailed information on birth outcomes, therefore gestational age was not examined as part of these analyses despite associations between oxidative stress and gestational age in previous studies .…”

“…Second, we explored effect measure modification by maternal race/ethnicity, infant sex, and study site. Third, we examined associations between SLEs and 8‐iso‐PGF 2α within strata of “good” and “poor” psychosocial status with the hypothesis that women with higher levels of psychological distress would have greater elevations in oxidative stress in response to external stressors like SLEs …”

“…Third, we examined associations between SLEs and 8-iso-PGF 2α within strata of "good" and "poor" psychosocial status with the hypothesis that women with higher levels of psychological distress would have greater elevations in oxidative stress in response to external stressors like SLEs. 24 Statistical analyses were conducted using RStudio Version 1.0.143 and SAS 9.4 (SAS Institute, Cary, NC).…”

Addressing Adverse Childhood Experiences: It’s All about Relationships

“…For example, at birth, infants who are exposed to high levels of prenatal stress, evidenced by elevated maternal cortisol levels, show a concomitant higher level of cortisol as well, and such elevations persist into early childhood [38]. Bush et al [41] also found that prenatal exposure to high levels of maternal stress affected temperamental characteristics and parasympathetic nervous system responses, both associated with early identification of later psychopathology. Similarly, children exposed to high levels of stress in early childhood may show effects well into adolescence [38].…”

Maternal distress across the postnatal period is associated with infant secretory immunoglobulin A

“…A growing literature reveals individual differences in maternal experiences regulate infant behavior and biology (Ostlund, Measelle, Laurent, Conradt, & Ablow, ). Specifically, prenatal stress, anxiety, and mood disturbances (e.g., depression) are associated with child outcomes such as low infant birth weight and preterm birth (Dunkel Schetter, ), aberrations in neurodevelopment (van den Bergh et al, ), behavioral and emotional problems (Bush et al, ; MacKinnon, Kingsbury, Mahedy, Evans, & Colman, ; Nolvi et al, ), and poor cognitive development (Bergman, Sarkar, O'Connor, Modi, & Glover, ; Schechter et al, ). Alterations to the in utero environment can even have long‐term implications for the child's behavior and physiology (Hocher, ; Rakers et al, ).…”