First, untreated maternal depression can take a heavy toll on moms and infants. Other studies have shown that babies do not learn as well when listening to the typically flat, less melodic voices of depressed women. Second, the preliminary evidence suggests that most antidepressants taken by nursing moms will not harm their babies. The results are encouraging. A study published in the February 2000 issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry by Stowe found no detectable levels of Paxil in nursing infants' blood.
Studies are underway with newer drugs.
Another baby suffered seizures, but his mother was taking additional drugs. However, recent research conducted by Christina Chambers, MPH, at the University of California, San Diego, found that children whose moms took Prozac while nursing gained weight more slowly than did children whose mothers stopped taking the drug. Most gained weight steadily, however. Because the infants studied gained steadily, they were not considered at risk. As with other ongoing studies involving the use of such drugs, it will be many years before we know if there are any long-term effects on these children.