Helping new mums

Two recent studies with new mums in mind give us valuable information in regards to how we can help our new mums.

Researchers have found a common link between those that experience depression and their brain chemistry and Mums that experience postpartum depression. Both groups showed an elevated level of an enzyme that breaks down two common brain substances – serotonin and melatonin. Therefore this would lead to low levels of the two in the system.

Serotonin –is a neurotransmitter, involved in the transmission of nerve impulses. It is manufactured in your body using the amino acid tryptophan. Release of serotonin or other drugs (depending on the type of nerve) causes the other nerves to fire and continue the message along the "cable”. It is also a chemical that helps maintain a "happy feeling," and seems to help keep our moods under control by helping with sleep, calming anxiety, and relieving depression.

Melatonin –is a hormone secreted by the pineal gland in the brain. It helps regulate other hormones and maintains the body's circadian rhythm. The circadian rhythm is an internal 24-hour “clock” that plays a critical role in when we fall asleep and when we wake up. When it is dark, your body produces more melatonin; when it is light, the production of melatonin drops. Being exposed to bright lights in the evening or too little light during the day can disrupt the body’s normal melatonin cycles.

When low levels of serotonin are found it may increase the intensity of depression and anxiety. While low levels of melatonin, decrease the quality of sleep.

Helping a new mum in the first few weeks after the birth of her child might mean looking at her diet to boost the production of these important brain chemicals. Two such compounds that are needed in the diet to help form serotonin and melatonin are Tyrosine and Tryptophan.

Tyrosine is an amino acid which may be good for those who have prolonged and intense stress. A dietary source of Tyrosine is found in soy products, chicken, turkey, fish, peanuts, almonds, avocados, bananas, milk, cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese, lima beans, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds.

Tryptophan is an amino acid needed for normal growth in infants and for nitrogen balance in adults. It is an essential amino acid, which means your body cannot produce it -- you must get it from your diet. In order for tryptophan in the diet to be changed into niacin, the body needs to have enough: iron, riboflavin and Vit B6.
Tryptophan can be found in: cheese, chicken, eggs, fish, milk, nuts, peanuts, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, soy, tofu and turkey.
To help with increasing the levels of serotonin having up to five servings a day of each tryptophan and tyrosine could help to moderate the effects of depression in a new mum.

Another study also reported that it isn’t about the amount of sleep new mums are getting its more about the quality of sleep. They might be accumulating the hours but because the circadian sleep cycles are being interrupted the quality of sleep is poor. Sleep cycles last about 90 minutes to 2 hours. And when a new mother’s sleep is interrupted it is often difficult to maintain the correct cycles for a healthy sleep pattern. That also explains why cat napping during the day may not “top up “the sleep that she misses out on. A better solution would be to “sleep when the baby sleeps”, especially in the first few weeks. This would help to maintain a healthy sleep routine and provide the mother with enough quality sleep. Or we need to find other opportunities for the mother to gain more quality sleep, maybe express milk for a night feed so that someone else could feed the child.