Stressful events during pregnancy linked to higher allergy risk

Don't you love it when people tell you not to stress out? Sometimes, stress is just out of your control and no amount of people telling you, "Relax ..." is going to make you actually do so. So forgive me for the following:

A recent study found that women who experience stressful events during pregnancy may bear children who are predisposed to allergies and asthma. The study found that babies of moms who reported three or more highly stressful events during pregnancy had increased levels of IgE in their cord blood. Elevated IgE levels are associated with the development of allergies and asthma.

The children in this study will be followed for five years to find if they actually do develop allergies at a higher rate than other children.

Obviously, stress is something we all try to avoid. In this study, many of the issues that caused stress were situations that are difficult to overcome, such as financial, marital, or health issues. So while I'm not going to tell you to "relax," I am going to remind you that during pregnancy, your body is already under a lot of stress. Cutting yourself a break will protect your health and your baby's too, potential future allergy problems aside.