Ep. 53: Can maternal separation explain postpartum depression?

Postpartum depression is associated with a host of negative outcomes for mothers and babies alike, yet we still have very little understanding of the etiology behind it and what may exacerbate or mitigate it. Research on postpartum depression is difficult, however, because we can't randomly assign people and try to weed out the various components that may affect mental health outcomes. It's a difficult task. But what if a standard way of looking at parenting and outcomes using animal models might be able to inadvertently inform on postpartum depression? Joining me this week is Dr. Annakarina Mundorf who has postulated that a common paradigm - maternal separation - may be able to help us better understand postpartum depression and provide insights into how we can help families. By looking at behavioural, neurological, and hormonal changes associated with maternal separation, Dr. Mundorf highlights what this can say about what mothers and babies need at this critical time. Dr. Annakarina Mundorf: https://www.medicalschool-hamburg.de/hochschule/unser-team/team-fakultaet-medizin-universitaet/wissenschaftliche-mitarbeiter/annakarina-mundorf/ Paper: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/dev.22219 Other papers of interest: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-80087-6 https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-14792-1_9 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0022395618300037