Recent research has revealed a surprising link between inflammation and depression. Although inflammation was first identified as a risk factor for postpartum depression in the late 1990s, researchers have recently learned that it underlies all the other risk factors. All other known causes of depression, such as pain, psychological trauma, lack of social support, or sleep problems, trigger the inflammatory response.
This research tells us why women are vulnerable to depression in the last trimester of pregnancy and postpartum. It also explains the link between depression in pregnancy and preterm birth, and why breastfeeding protects maternal mood because it down-regulates the stress and inflammatory response.
- Lecturer:
- Dr Kathleen Kendall-Tackett
- CERPs:
- 1 L CERP / 1 Pre-IBLCE exam hour
- Access period:
- One week
- Lecture recorded for Health e-Learning
Dr. Kendall-Tackett is a health psychologist and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, and the Owner and Editor-in-Chief of Praeclarus Press, a small press specializing in women's health. Dr. Kendall-Tackett is Editor-in-Chief of the journal, Psychological Trauma and was Founding Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Lactation, a position she held for 11 years. She is Fellow of the American Psychological Association in Health and Trauma Psychology, Past President of the APA Division of Trauma Psychology, and a member of APA’s Publications and Communications Board.
Dr. Kendall-Tackett specializes in women's-health research including breastfeeding, depression, trauma, and health psychology, and has won many awards for her work including the 2019 President’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Field of Trauma Psychology from the American Psychological Association. Dr. Kendall-Tackett has authored more than 470 articles or chapters and is author or editor of 39 books. Her most recent books include Depression in New Mothers, 3rd Edition (2017, Routledge UK), Women’s Mental Health Across the Lifespan (2017, Routledge US, with Lesia Ruglass), and The Phantom of the Opera: A Social History of the World’s Most Popular Musical (2018, Praeclarus). Her latest book is called Breastfeeding Doesn’t Need to Suck (2022, American Psychological Association).