It found that children whose fathers scored highly for psychological distress, depression and anxiety at week 17 or 18 of the baby's gestation had higher levels of emotional and behavioral difficulties at age 3, including disruptive behavior, anxiety and problems getting along with other children.Yes, okay...
The data collected did not address how or why this association exists, but several "possible mechanisms" could be at work, she says. One possibility is a genetically transmitted risk to the child, she says. Or depression in the father could affect the mental health of the mother in such a way that the neonatal development of the child is affected. Another possibility: The father's prenatal mental state could predict his mental state after the child's birth, which "may also account for some of the associations found," she says.Or, there might be an illness that the father transmits to the child after birth.
Never mind, that is clearly not worth considering.
