In a recent news article on MSNBC, they examine the issues of depression and pregnancy. They ask “which is worse, having depression during pregnancy, or taking medication for it?”
There is debate on this issue. Medication can be harmful to the unborn child, yet depression, if left untreated is dangerous as well. Pregnant women in this situation have a difficult choice. The woman in this news story ultimately decided not to take antidepressant medication. She did her research and discussed it with doctors. She was “unsure of what they would do to her unborn baby girl.”
“I just didn’t find in my research that anyone could conclusively say to me that it wouldn’t hurt her,” she said. She made an informed choice.
The discussion and debate on this issue is now out there in the media for people to consider. But some women may not have had this information available, and their babies were not so fortunate.
As lawsuits against the makers of Zoloft start to take shape, it seems there are many women who were prescribed the antidepressant without proper warnings. They perhaps were not able to conduct proper research, or took the medication believing that it was 100% safe for their unborn baby. As a result children have born with health problems or birth defects.
“Some studies have also found taking Paxil, Zoloft or Prozac in the third trimester of pregnancy may increase the risk for persistent pulmonary hypertension, a condition in which there are problems with the baby’s blood circulation, and not enough oxygen reaches the bloodstream.” Yet other studies found no link. More research is needed.
