Pregnant women losing more than just figure

Among the many odd effects pregnancy can have, one of them appears to be increasing the risk of losing things.

Scientists found that women in the later stages of pregnancy tend to suffer a loss of spatial memory – the memory of locations and positions of objects.

The problem was apparent in the last six months of pregnancy and lasted at least three months after a woman had given birth.

Experts believe it can be traced to the effect of pregnancy hormones on the brain.

Study leader Diane Farrar, a midwife from the Bradford Institute for Health Research, said: "Forgetfulness and slips of attention are phenomena commonly reported by pregnant women, but scientists have yet to identify a specific mechanism by which this memory impairment might occur. Indeed, some question whether the reported memory loss exists at all.

"Altered hormone levels during pregnancy may affect brain regions involved in memory processing."

The researchers compared 23 expectant mothers and 24 non-pregnant women who were given tests of different kinds of memory. Mood, anxiety and attention levels were also measured, as well as concentrations of hormones in the blood.