Overview
- In Peru, the National Maternal Perinatal Institute, which marked Maternal Mental Health Day on Wednesday, reported that about one in four pregnant women and one in five mothers in the first postnatal year experience depression or anxiety.
- An INMP study of more than 5,000 patients found that a history of violence doubles the risk of depression and raises the odds of suicidal thoughts up to fivefold during pregnancy.
- Specialists urged routine mental health checks during prenatal and postnatal visits, with clinics offering empathetic listening and direct access to psychology and psychiatry.
- Coverage stressed social drivers such as heavy unpaid care, with Peru’s 2024 time-use survey showing women do more than three times the house and care work men do, which fuels stress and isolation.
- Employers pointed to concrete steps, with Danone citing up to 20 weeks of paid leave for the birthing parent, flexible and hybrid schedules, lactation rooms, and childcare reimbursements to ease the load.