Not only the body but also the brain of the woman changes during pregnancy

According to the outcome of a study published in December 2016 in the journal Nature Neuroscience,  pregnancy alters the size and structure of the brain regions involved in understanding the thoughts, feelings, beliefs and intentions of others.

The study identified changes in as many as 11 regions so as to be able to understand whether a woman had become pregnant or not through the analysis of brain magnetic resonance.

The research involved 25 women and 19 of their partners who underwent high-resolution brain MRI scans before and after pregnancy.

20 never-pregnant women and 17 of their male partners underwent MRI scans at the same time intervals.

No brain changes were seen in males.

In women who became mothers, on the other hand, the changes were evident and present even two years after giving birth.

While some brain changes that occur during pregnancy persist for life in rodents, in humans it is not yet clear how long they last, as the study only extended up to two years after birth.

Furthermore, all these changes were seen both in mothers who had a natural pregnancy and in those who underwent assisted reproduction treatment.

What are the consequences of brain changes that occur during pregnancy?

The reduction in gray matter occurred in several brain regions of pregnant women, including the prefrontal region and the temporal cortex.

Loss of volume does not necessarily translate into loss of function. Indeed, sometimes less is more: the loss of gray matter could represent a reorganization of the synapses into more efficient neural networks.

Even during adolescence our brain undergoes a sort of “synaptic pruning”. During that period of development, the weaker brain connections are eliminated, leaving a more efficient and more specialized neural network. Adolescents with a more ‘mature’ network (i.e., less gray matter) actually show increased brain activity in their thinned regions.

Joint tests performed on women before and after pregnancy show no significant differences demonstrating that reduction in gray matter volume does not mean reduction in brain capacity.

The areas of the brain that show changes are involved in a variety of behaviors,  and the changes present can help women forget the pain or difficulty of pregnancy.

The brain modifications would also help women prepare for motherhood. For example, they could help a mother understand her child’s needs and feel emotionally connected to her child. If the women were shown pictures of their newborns, the brain regions that reacted the most were the ones that showed the pregnancy-related change.

It has also been seen that the brain areas affected are those that overlap with the brain circuits involved in understanding what another person is thinking and feeling. Very important qualities for a mother who takes care of a child.