Depresión Post Parto y Ácidos Grasos Poliinsaturados

Abstract

The perinatal period is characterized by a special susceptibility to mood disorders, for which a series of causal hypotheses have been postulated. Among these is the psychotropic function of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), together with the inflammatory hypothesis of depression for which the effect of fatty acids would help exert an anti-inflammatory effect. The following review is developed to elucidate the relationship that exists between polyunsaturated fatty acids on the development of postpartum depression. The research was conducted using six empirical studies, three of which were experimental in rodents that provided data at the molecular level on the effect of PUFA consumption on different functional aspects of the frontal cortex, the hippocampus and the striatum. Two cohort studies were also used, within which a relationship between the consumption of fish in the diet and the presence of affective symptoms was observed. Finally, a double-blind, randomized trial was included in a cohort study that used PUFA supplementation through capsules, but it was the only study that found a very poor relationship between these and depression, while provided a data that could be of interest for future research, since it found greater decrease in symptoms by fatty acids only in patients with previous depressive episodes. In conclusion, there is a relationship between PUFA and the pathophysiology of postpartum depression, but it is necessary to deepen to point out the parts of the pathophysiological process that are directly affected by the PUFA.