A woman is more at risk of developing mental health issues if her father has experienced post-natal depression, new research shows.
Dads can also experience post-natal depression, with the condition affecting around one in 20 fathers, the same study found.
The research by Cambridge University studied more than 3,000 families in the Bristol area in England.
Researchers found a link between men with post-natal depression and their daughters experiencing depression at the age of 18.
“It appears that depression in fathers is linked with an increased level of stress in the whole family,” Paul Ramchandani, the study’s author, said in a statement, adding, “Whilst many children will not be affected by parental depression in this way, the findings of this study highlight the importance of providing appropriate help to fathers, as well as mothers, who may experience depression.”
The “small but significant” risk applied only to daughters. Sons were found to be unaffected, researchers said in the study published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
It is unclear why girls may be more affected at this age. There may be links to specific aspects of father-daughter relationships as girls go through adolescence, the research team suggests.
The findings are important because they have implications for perinatal services, which have traditionally considered post-natal depression to be a potential problem for mothers only, the study’s authors say.
The survey, the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, which has been running since 1991, looked at 3,176 father-and-child pairs.