Increasing US death rate tied to maternal mental health, study finds
Newsy
The CDC says 80% of U.S. pregnancy-related deaths are preventable. New data found that maternal mental health issues are caused by barriers to care.
Health officials analyzing the increasing U.S. death rate have honed in on maternal mental illness as the leading cause of deaths related to pregnancies in the United States, according to new data published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
The study found that the U.S. maternal mortality rate was at around two to threefold more than other counties considered to be high income.
The data found that many schemes to try and fight or mitigate maternal mortality haven't included a mental health component tailored to that specific facet of the problem.
Researchers found that a mother's own upbringing and childhood along with her in utero experience shapes the risk for mental disorders that might be exacerbated by various "exposures," in life, as the study authors put it.
The study looked at 30 recent reviews along with 15 historical references to gain more insights into various under-recognized aspects of how mental illness shapes maternal mortality.
