Revista Brasileira de Epidemiologia · 2026
Alcohol and mental health during the pandemic
Alcohol consumption, mental health, and the moderating role of social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic in southern Brazil
Francine Costa et al.
What we found
5% of mothers reported drinking more alcohol during the pandemic; in this group, depression and anxiety scores were higher.
Why it matters
This does not show that alcohol caused these symptoms, but it indicates that changes in drinking can accompany periods of greater psychological distress.
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Revista Brasileira de Epidemiologia · 2025
How isolation changed mothers' habits
Changes in habits among mothers during the period of social isolation due to COVID-19 in the municipality of Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Jefferson Sales da Silva et al.
What we found
During isolation, 51.9% of mothers reported less physical activity and 58.1% said they had increased the amount of food they ate.
Why it matters
Public health crises also transform eating routines, physical activity and other habits that are part of everyday health.
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Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry · 2023
Fears about their children and maternal mental health
The association between maternal fears about their infant/toddler during the COVID-19 pandemic and depression and anxiety: a birth cohort study
Raquel Wermann Foschiera et al.
What we found
Concern about their children's future and fear of passing COVID-19 on to them were associated with higher trajectories of maternal depression and anxiety.
Why it matters
Part of mothers' distress during the pandemic was linked precisely to concern for their children's safety and future.
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Sleep Health · 2023
Sleep in pregnancy and symptoms of depression and anxiety
Sleep and its association with depressive and anxiety symptoms during the last weeks of pregnancy: A population-based study
Christian Loret de Mola et al.
What we found
Shorter sleep, difficulty falling asleep or getting up and a more evening-type sleep pattern were associated with more symptoms of depression and/or anxiety.
Why it matters
Looking at sleep can help recognise situations of greater emotional vulnerability in the perinatal period.
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Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry · 2021
Mothers' mental health before and during the pandemic
Maternal mental health before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in the 2019 Rio Grande birth cohort
Christian Loret de Mola et al.
What we found
At the first assessment during the pandemic, 29.3% of mothers had probable depression, 25.9% probable generalised anxiety and 40.5% moderate or severe stress. Depression and anxiety increased compared with the period before the pandemic.
Why it matters
Having data from before the crisis made it possible to size the change in maternal mental health, instead of observing only an isolated snapshot of that moment.
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Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry · 2021
Depression and anxiety throughout the pandemic
Increased depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazilian mothers: a longitudinal study
Christian Loret de Mola et al.
What we found
Among mothers assessed at all three time points, depression rose from 3.1% before the pandemic to 30.6% at the second assessment during the pandemic; anxiety rose from 9.6% to 28.8%.
Why it matters
Following the same women over time showed the scale of the change and illustrates the strength of a cohort for studying what happens during a crisis.
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