Will pandemic ‘coronababies’ live with long-term trauma?
Some researchers say the extreme stress pregnant women are facing may spread to their fetuses. But not all experts think that today’s newborns are destined for difficulty.
The collective stress caused by the ongoing pandemic has become so all-encompassing, it has opened up a scientific debate over whether babies born during lockdowns will suffer from poorer health for the rest of their lives. If you’re wondering why that might happen, scientists say you can look no further than the North American Ice Storm of 1998.
For up to six weeks after the storm knocked out power across eastern Ontario and southern Quebec, pregnant women had to grapple with ice-cold temperatures at home—and that left a biological mark on their babies, says University of Calgary radiologist Catherine Lebel. The Project Ice Storm study scanned the brains of 35 boys and 33 girls whose mothers were pregnant during the
