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Pregnant women who avidly follow showbiz new and celebrity "baby bumps" can end up being less attached to their newborns than other mums, according to a New Zealand study.
Researchers at Victoria University, in a study of 468 pregnant women, found a potentially unhealthy link between images of pregnant celebrities and a disturbance to important prenatal attachment developed during pregnancy.
While those women with a minimal or moderate interest in following pregnant celebrities weren't seen as being at risk, some groups of women were more vulnerable to such images, Dr Jayne Krisjanous said in a statement Wednesday.
"These include the young, those unable to gain information about pregnancy from established reliable sources, or women who have a non-healthy level of regard, or obsession, with celebrity culture," said Krisjanous.
"These women tend to worry about their weight, leading to a negative pregnant body image and then a reduced level of prenatal attachment, which can carry over after the baby is born."
Krisjanous said the popular press tended to applaud celebrities who maintained ideal body shape, while those who failed to were shamed.
"Pregnant celebrities are expected to continue to look attractive, with a perfect bump being the only change to their usual figure," she said.
News coverage of pregnant celebrities should be approached with caution and medical experts should discuss reliable sources of information with pregnant women, she suggested.
"We are not suggesting that pregnant celebrities should not be in the media, but it would be great to see them having a greater role in promoting healthy lifestyles and attitudes."
