AHFMR News

New research investigates mental health for new mothers

(Calgary, AB) April 24, 2007... A recent report by the Calgary Health Region showed that nearly 80 percent of Calgarians are not eating properly by not meeting the daily nutrition criteria as set forth in Canada's Food Guide. For women who are pregnant, or considering pregnancy, an inadequate diet can affect their mental well-being. Brenda Leung, a researcher at the University of Calgary, is conducting a new study to determine whether dietary intake during pregnancy is associated with postpartum depression in new mothers.

Postpartum depression affects approximately 16 percent of women after childbirth. Brenda Leung is investigating the dietary intake of women during pregnancy to determine whether not eating sufficiently during pregnancy is related to depression during pregnancy or during the postpartum period.

Brenda Leung's research is supported by a unique partnership between the Alberta Mental Health Board, and the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research.

** A Photo Opportunity with a Researcher at the Children's Hospital will be Available **

What:		Media opportunity to interview medical researcher: Brenda Leung
When:		Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Time:		10:00 AM – 12:00 (Noon)*
Where:		Alberta Children's Hospital: Kinsmen Learning Centre, 4th Flr. 2888 Shaganappi Trail NW

Please call Dwayne Brunner, AHFMR Communications, at (403) 619-4556 to arrange an interview.

For further information, contact Taryn Pawlivsky, Alberta Mental Health Board Communications Coordinator, at (780) 917-4127.

Backgrounder

• Brenda Leung is a PhD student in the Faculty of Medicine in the Department of Community Health Sciences at the University of Calgary. Her research is funded by the Alberta Mental Health Board in partnership with the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research.

• Postpartum depression is a complex mix of physical, emotional and behavioral changes that occur in a mother after giving birth. It is a serious condition that can have a long lasting impact on the woman, her children and family. Symptoms can range from mild to severe depression and may appear within days of delivery or gradually, perhaps up to a year later. Symptoms may last a few weeks or longer.

• Brenda Leung's research supervisor is Dr. Bonnie Kaplan, a Research Psychologist, also at the University of Calgary. In a broader research project, Bonnie and Brenda hope to also examine the mental health outcomes of children who are born to mothers who had insufficient dietary intake during pregnancy. With rates of cognitive and behavioral problems (such as autistic spectrum disorder, hyperactivity, learning disabilities) on the rise, both Brenda and Bonnie's research will be instrumental in understanding the link between diet of pregnant mothers and the mental health of their children.

• The Alberta Mental Health Board (AMHB) is the provincial health authority that oversees and advances Alberta's mental health system. The AMHB is involved in numerous initiatives, including advocacy, policy advice and working with regional health authorities and stakeholders to improve and facilitate mental health research and services. The AMHB also collaborates with inter-provincial, national and international partners. For more information, visit www.amhb.ab.ca.

• The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR) currently provides funding for over 600 researchers and researchers in training at the province's three main universities. The foundation supports a community of researchers who generate knowledge that improves the health and quality of life of Albertans and people throughout the world. AHFMR's commitment is to fund health research based on international standards of excellence and carried out by new and established investigators and researchers in training. Total AHFMR funding more than a quarter of a century is in excess of $900 million. For more information, visit www.ahfmr.ab.ca.