“Mothers’ Anxiety During Pregnancy Is Associated with Asthma in Their Children” (2009), by Hannah Cookson, Raquel Granell, Carol Joinson, Yoav Ben-Shlomo, and A. John Henderson

Abstract

In 2009, A. John Henderson and colleagues published “Mothers’ Anxiety During Pregnancy Is Associated with Asthma in Their Children,” hereafter, “Mothers’ Anxiety,” in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Previous studies had shown that maternal stress during pregnancy affects children’s health during childhood. The researchers explored the association of asthma in children with maternal anxiety during pregnancy. The cause of asthma is often unknown. Thus, the researchers tested the possibility that maternal anxiety may increase disease risk in the children, particularly the development of asthma. The authors reported a positive association between maternal anxiety during pregnancy and asthma in offspring, indicating the possibility of a causal relationship. The authors’ findings demonstrated the health effects of maternal stress during pregnancy on children’s physiological and immune development.