University of Calgary, Canada.
Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2012 Feb;37(2):270-9. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.06.011. Epub 2011 Jul 12.
The mechanisms whereby maternal stress during pregnancy exerts organizational effects on fetal development require elaboration. The aim of this study was to assess the plausibility of cortisol as a biological link between maternal psychological distress during pregnancy and fetal development. Previous research has resulted in equivocal findings for between-persons differences in stress and cortisol. Ecological momentary assessment was used to simultaneously assess mood and cortisol 5 times daily for 3 days in 83 women (gestational ages 6-37 weeks). Results from multilevel analysis indicated a robust within-person association between negative mood and cortisol. For each 1.0% increase in negative mood there was a corresponding 1.9% increase in cortisol. This association was unaffected by advancing gestational age. The results suggest that cortisol is a plausible biological mechanism for transducing the effects of maternal psychological distress during pregnancy to fetal development.
怀孕期间母体压力对胎儿发育产生组织影响的机制尚需阐述。本研究旨在评估皮质醇作为母体怀孕期间心理困扰与胎儿发育之间生物学联系的可能性。先前的研究对于个体间压力和皮质醇差异的研究结果存在争议。本研究采用生态瞬时评估法，在 83 名女性（妊娠 6-37 周）中，每天 5 次、持续 3 天对情绪和皮质醇进行同步评估。多层次分析结果表明，个体内负性情绪与皮质醇之间存在着强有力的关联。负性情绪每增加 1.0%，皮质醇相应增加 1.9%。这种关联不受妊娠周数的影响。结果表明，皮质醇是将母体怀孕期间心理困扰的影响传递给胎儿发育的一种合理的生物学机制。
