Stress is a normal part of life. Everyone experiences stress from time to time. When stress becomes chronic and negatively affects your everyday life, it becomes a problem. It’s natural to worry about your unborn child when you’re expecting. After all, there are so many things that can go wrong.
When you’re pregnant, your unborn child develops at an astounding pace. At just eight weeks, an unborn baby has developed a beating heart, soft hair, and even eyelashes. They are continuing to grow and develop in so many other ways. Your baby will undergo numerous physical transformations from the moment until birth– all in response to the new environment they are growing in.
Stress can affect your unborn child’s health, impacting growth and development. Your unborn child’s growth and development can make an affectless response in the early stages of pregnancy. When you experience a stressful event, your body will produce stress hormones. These can cross the placenta to enter your baby’s bloodstream, where they can influence your baby’s growth and development. Studies show that mothers who experience a high level of stress can have babies with smaller growth rates are more likely to be born prematurely than babies of mothers who are less stressed.
Higher levels of stress have also been linked to an increased risk of infections, like Group B streptococcus, during your pregnancy. Stress can also affect your baby’s health in the long term. Studies have shown that children born to mothers who experienced high stress during pregnancy have higher stress hormones in their blood than other children. These kids are also more likely to have behavioral difficulties, problems with attention and aggressiveness.
There’s no doubt that stress can have a negative impact on your unborn child’s health, as well as your health. Fortunately, there are many things you can do to manage your stress during pregnancy.