Pregnancy Brain Is A Thing

“I forgot why I got off the couch”, “Did I wash my hair already?”, “How to open the door?”. While all these may seem trivial or downright hilarious, there are some women who do experience what is commonly termed as ‘baby brain’, says Dr Vinieta Diwakar, consultant obstetrician and gynaecology, Columbia Asia Hospital, Ghaziabad. Read on to know more...

- Dr Vinieta Diwakar

Amnesia is linked to memory loss and the decline in the cognitive abilities of a person. Interestingly, many women around the world report a decline in cognitive abilities during their pregnancies. This includes forgetting things, confusion, and difficulty in focusing. The medical community usually terms these symptoms as ‘pregnancy brain’, ‘baby brain’, and even ‘momnesia’. However, if this is an actual condition experienced by expectant mothers, is much debated.

Exploring the reality of pregnancy brain

One psychological study on this subject states that poorer memory and thinking problems affect 50 to 80 per cent of pregnant women. Older, but still relevant studies, like one published in the American Journal of Neuroradiology (2002), brain volume of pregnant mothers can reduce up to four per cent and then normalise post-delivery.

Another study published in 2007 in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology found that expecting mothers, throughout their pregnancy, worsen in memory tasks than matched non-pregnant controls. Contrary to above assertions, a 2014 study published in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology found no such observations in their research on 42 expectant women.

However, a larger research study published in the Medical Journal of Australia this year, analysed 20 studies and included 709 pregnant women, revealed that pregnant women showed poorer cognitive functioning, memory, and executive functioning, particularly during the third trimester.