Mums-to-be on anti-depressants putting babies at risk

Mums-to-be on anti-depressants putting babies at risk

    Women who take anti-depressants during pregnancy are endangering their unborn babies, experts have warned. The widely prescribed pills have been found to drastically raise the odds of miscarriages, premature birth, autism and lifethreatening high blood pressure, they said.
    Researchers focused on the complications linked to a group of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which include Prozac and Seroxat.
    It was found that these medications increase the risk of a miscarriage by 17% and more than double the likelihood of pre-eclampsia — high blood pressure
during pregnancy — which can be fatal. They also double the chances of the baby being born premature, or developing autism. In addition, researchers say, babies are more likely to suffer from heart defects and problems with their bowels.
    SSRIs treat depression by boosting the level of the ‘happy hormone’ serotonin in the brain. But researchers believe that serotonin is also getting into the womb and harming the development of the fetus’s brain, lungs, heart and digestive system.

Avoid anti-depressants when you’re pregnant