Siegmann Eva-Maria, Eichler Anna, Buchholz Verena Nadine, Gerlach Jennifer, Pontones Constanza A, Titzmann Adriana, Arnaud Nicolas, Consortium Imac-Mind, Mühle Christiane, Beckmann Matthias W, Fasching Peter A, Kratz Oliver, Moll Gunther H, Kornhuber Johannes, Lenz Bernd
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
Department of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), 91054 Erlangen, Germany.
J Clin Med. 2023 Sep 23;12(19):6142. doi: 10.3390/jcm12196142.
Prenatal androgen exposure modulates the development of the brain, with lasting effects on its function and behavior over the infant's life span. Environmental factors during pregnancy, in particular maternal stress, have been shown to influence the androgen load of the unborn child. We here addressed the research gap on whether a mindfulness intervention or a pregnancy education administered to pregnant women more affects the androgen exposure of the unborn child (quantified by the proxies of second-to-fourth digit length ratio (2D:4D) and anogenital distance assessed one year after delivery and at delivery, respectively). Moreover, we tested the mindfulness intervention's effects on maternal perceived stress, anxiety, depressiveness, and mindfulness. Pregnant women (gestation weeks 8-14) were randomized to a 15-week app-based mindfulness-oriented intervention ( = 72) or a pregnancy education intervention (control condition; = 74). The mindfulness-oriented group did not significantly differ from the pregnancy education group in infants' 2D:4D or anogenital distance (partial η ≤ 0.01) or in maternal stress, anxiety, depressiveness, or mindfulness. However, the descriptive results indicate that across pregnancy, stress and anxiety decreased and mindfulness increased in both groups. Overall, this study did not show that the mindfulness intervention (relative to the pregnancy education) reduced the prenatal androgen exposure of the unborn children or improved the maternal outcomes significantly.
产前雄激素暴露会影响大脑发育，对婴儿一生的大脑功能和行为产生持久影响。孕期的环境因素，尤其是母亲的压力，已被证明会影响未出生胎儿的雄激素水平。我们在此研究了一个问题，即对孕妇进行正念干预或孕期教育，哪一种对未出生胎儿的雄激素暴露影响更大（分别通过产后一年和分娩时测量的食指与无名指长度比（2D:4D）及肛殖距来量化）。此外，我们还测试了正念干预对母亲感知压力、焦虑、抑郁及正念状态的影响。将怀孕8至14周的孕妇随机分为两组，一组接受为期15周的基于应用程序的正念干预（n = 72），另一组接受孕期教育干预（对照组；n = 74）。正念干预组与孕期教育组在婴儿的2D:4D或肛殖距方面（偏η²≤0.01），以及在母亲的压力、焦虑、抑郁或正念状态方面，均无显著差异。然而，描述性结果表明，在整个孕期，两组的压力和焦虑水平均有所下降，正念状态均有所提高。总体而言，本研究并未表明正念干预（相对于孕期教育）能降低未出生胎儿的产前雄激素暴露或显著改善母亲的各项指标。
