Postpartum depression: if you consume few Omega 3s there is more risk!

Omega-3 deficiency and high blood omega-6 to omega-3 ratios are two conditions associated with postpartum and prenatal depression, a cluster of mental disorders that affect women during pregnancy and after the birth of the baby. EPA and DHA could, therefore, be an effective and safe treatment to combat perinatal depressive syndrome due to their ability to regulate neuronal inflammation and brain plasticity.

This is according to a meta-analysis study published in the journal Biological Psychiatry and conducted by a team of researchers from several research centers in Taiwan and Singapore.

Perinatal depression: a widespread disorder  

During the perinatal period, which extends from pregnancy through the child's first year of life, many women experience mental disorders that can have a significant impact on the lives of both mother and newborn. Approximately 90,000 women in Italy experience perinatal depression each year. The illness can originate from the combination of several factors: social, hormonal, physical, psychological and cognitive. Anxiety in pregnancy is often associated with negative consequences on the development of the newborn and the possibility of manifesting postpartum depression; about 40% of women who are depressed in pregnancy will also manifest symptoms after the birth of the baby. As for the postpartum period, up to 70-80% of mothers experience mild and transient symptoms of melancholy and depression, the so-called "baby blues," in the first few days. 

This is a very common reaction that tends to disappear quickly. In contrast, 10-15% of new mothers experience much more severe depressive symptoms (postpartum depression), which last from 3 to 9 months after the birth of the baby. Several past research studies have shown the importance of proper nutrition and the right intake of certain nutrients, such as vitamins and omega-3s, for women's health. Among the benefits of polyunsaturated fatty acids is the effect exerted on the successful outcome of pregnancy and the health of the mother after delivery. Several studies have suggested the existence of a correlation between omega-3 deficiency and an increased risk of suffering from postpartum depression, and have documented the protective effect of DHA on the risk of onset of perinatal depression, due to its anti-inflammatory and neuroplastic effect. Although several studies have shown a high frequency of omega-3 deficiency in women with perinatal depression, the results have often been discordant.

Omega-3 deficiency and omega-6 excess are associated with the risk of depression

The results of the new research showed that in women affected by prenatal and postpartum depression, total omega-3 levels were significantly lower than those found in women not affected by the depressive disorders. Specifically, when subgroups were analyzed, it was found that in patients with prenatal depression, EPA and DHA levels were significantly lower. Similarly, the researchers also found an association between depression and a higher ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 concentrations. According to the scientists who conducted the study, these results taken together highlight the importance of polyunsaturated fatty acids in clinical depression. 

Indeed, the brain is rich in omega-3s and their derivatives, which regulate several biological processes, such as neurotransmission, neuroplasticity, and neuronal inflammation, and thus mood and cognitive function; this suggests a role for them in treatment for perinatal depression. The meta-analysis, moreover, confirms how this mental disorder is associated with an excessively high ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 polyunsaturated fats, and thus an excessively unbalanced dietary intake, in favor of the former, between the two types of fatty acids. According to anthropological and epidemiological studies, humans evolved on a diet with a ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 of about 1:1, whereas in present-day Western diets it is 10-20:1, indicating a profound imbalance in fatty acid composition due to excessive consumption of animal fats and poor consumption of fish.

Some details of the research

The meta-analysis, a type of study that examines data from a set of research studies, included 12 studies available as of December 2016. The research aimed to compare in women with perinatal depression and healthy control subjects, the concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids, including EPA, DHA, and arachidonic acid (AA); total omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids; and the ratio between these two. Analyses were also conducted in different subgroups of subjects, of polyunsaturated fatty acid levels in patients with prenatal and postnatal depression, both compared with healthy controls.

The role of the relationship between omega-6 and omega-3 will need to be explored further

According to the authors of the research, the observed results consolidate the important role of omega-3s in postpartum depression and depression occurring during pregnancy. Nutritional medicine is an important strategy for improving the effectiveness of treatment for depression, and the data obtained provide a strong rationale for conducting clinical studies on the therapeutic and prophylactic effects of omega-3 in the health of expectant mothers. In particular, although the positive effects of EPA and DHA in the treatment of depression have long been recognized, the importance of imbalance in omega-3 versus omega-6 consumption in mental health in women during and after pregnancy will need to be further examined.

Source: Pao-Yen Lin et al, "Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Perinatal Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis." Biological Psychiatry.