The Surprising Effect of Paternal Depression on the Unborn Baby: A Study

We have this idea that the mother's womb is a perfectly calm place where the infant is completely protected from everything happening in the outside world, but unfortunately, that is just not the case. Many traditional cultures still recognize that the mood, emotions, and feelings of the mother as VERY important and go great lengths to reduce her burdens, but it is relatively rare for soon-to-be mothers to be asked much about her feelings & emotions during prenatal visits, despite there being plenty of evidence that suggests that maternal states of mind can shape the very structures of the developing brain.

But did you know that the father's mood may also have very real effects on the pregnancy & gestating infant? Read on:

A large Swedish survey recently showed that paternal depression during a mother's pregnancy had MORE of an effect on the timing of the birth than maternal depression.

At first this seems like an anomaly, but it makes sense when you think of paternal mental pain as being "outsourced" to the mother, who may feel an obligation to mother not only her gestating child but the suffering father as well.

What do you think?