A deeper look has been done at the link between diaper shortages and the mental health of moms. When we think of what we need to take care of a baby, the list seems endless. There always seems to be something that we need, and a lot of them are often thought of as things that are nice to have, but not essential. Things like food, clothes, and diapers are essential items for a new mom, but what happens if a mom doesn’t have enough? While it may seem obvious that the baby would be at risk if they didn’t have the things they needed, it can also have an impact on mom’s mental health.
According to Medical Xpress and The Conversation, it has been found that diaper needs are a health indicator, and this has become clear during the pandemic. A report found that more than a third of homes in Massachusetts did not have enough diapers for their children.
The survey found that mothers did not have enough to change their child’s diaper as much as they needed, and this had some serious consequences. This could lead to more doctor’s visits for diaper rashes and UTIs. However, they also found a link between diaper need and depression in the mother, two factors that are not often associated.
The survey was done on more than 3,000 residents from a food bank survey.
- They found that 36% of young families reported that they went through the pandemic with not enough diapers for their children.
- They found that those at greatest risk of not having enough diapers were those who were younger than 26 years old, Latino parents, and those without high school education.
The researchers stated that they already knew that there was a link between not having enough diapers, and not having food and other necessities, but the link to depression is new.
Even though they learned a lot, they state that there are still a lot of things that they don’t know. They don’t know how to repair this issue and make sure families have enough diapers that they need. Previous studies have shown that providing families with diapers can go a long way to helping them, so work needs to be done to address this.
Depression, when mom does not have the basic needs for her baby, would seem to be common sense, as it would weigh on her mind and add to her mom guilt about how she is caring for her baby.
Sources: Medical Xpress, The Conversation