Baby brain not only exists – it lasts for TWO YEARS after birth
We’ve all been known to blame being pregnant on a whole host of things. Now, it appears ‘baby brain’ is not only real, it lasts for a long time after we’ve given birth.
Experts say having a baby actually changes the structure of a woman’s brain! But not EXACTLY in the way we think it does.
A study of 25 first-time mums has found that there are long-lasting changes that happen in a new mother’s brain that may help her ability to care for her children.
Five year study of new mums
The Leiden University, Netherlands study found that the volume of grey matter decreases in certain areas of a woman’s brain after she’s been pregnant, and those changes last at least two years.
“While we knew pregnancy has major physiological and physical effects on the body thanks to extreme hormone surges, brain changes had never been tested before,”the researchers state.
“These changes were remarkably consistent. So consistent that a computer algorithm could automatically identify which of the women in our sample had been pregnant between the sessions and which (had) not,” study co-author Elseline Hoekzema said.
The study compared the MRI brain scans of women before and after their first pregnancy, to women who had not become pregnant, fathers and men who didn’t have children. What the researchers found is that this reduction in grey matter is perhaps a way of the brain ‘fine-tuning’ itself to better relate to motherhood.
“Brain changes may sound somewhat intimidating, but our findings suggest that there may be an evolutionary purpose to these changes that may serve you in some way when you become a mother,” Ms Hoekzema explained.
But does ‘baby brain’ make us forgetful?
The researchers say that while a reduction in brain matter may sound like it would impact our memory and intelligence (hence explaining ‘baby brain’), that’s not actually the case. “It is important to stress that our findings do not suggest any link to changes in general cognitive abilities or intelligence,” Ms Hoekzema said.
Previous research had found that a woman’s brain shrinks during late pregnancy and can take up to six months to go back to its full size!
Check out the 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge
Used by 100,000’s of mums it is the best way to shape up after having kids.
Our 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge is a family-friendly, breastfeeding-safe program designed FOR MUMS to help them tackle their health and lose the baby weight.
Every week you are given a different meal plan to follow and each month we add NEW recipes to our Challenge Recipe Hub. That way, you’ll never get bored and stay on weight loss track while digging into healthy, yummy recipes.
Learn more about our 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge HERE.
