New fathers might be proud poppas, but their mental health might be shaky as they adapt to their increased responsibilities, a new study says.
was unexpected and underscores the need to pay attention to warning signs of mental ill-health in fathers long after the birth of their child,” senior researcher Dr. Donghao Lu said in a news release. Lu is a senior lecturer and associate professor at the Institute of Environmental Medicine at Karolinska Institute in Sweden.
For the study, researchers tracked 1.9 million births from nearly 1.1 million fathers that took place in Sweden between 2003 and 2021. Results showed that men were more than five times less likely to be diagnosed with any psychiatric disorder during their partner'sHowever, diagnosis rates returned to normal levels within a few months of delivery, and then increased by 30% for problems like depressionAnd this could be an underestimate, researchers emphasized. The study is based on clinical diagnoses, which means that men who didn't seek medical care might have been overlooked. “The transition to fatherhood often involves both positive experiences and a range of new stresses,” lead researcher Jing Zhou, a doctoral student at Karolinska Institute, said in a news release. “Many cherish the intimate moments with their child, whilst at the same time the relationship with their partner may be affected andquality may deteriorate, which can contribute to an increased risk of mental ill-health,” Zhou said. These results indicate that men could be getting the short end of the stick when it comes to pregnancy care, said Dr. Khatiya Moon, medical director for the collaborative care program at Northwell Health in New York City. "Screening for mental health concerns in fathers is important and is something that isn't really done very much," she said. “During pregnancy, a woman typically has roughly six to eight appointments with a doctor in the first postpartum year. An infant has roughly six or so appointments with a doctor, possibly more if they have medical complications, of course,” Moon said. “Whereas the father in that entire nine-month time span of the pregnancy plus the postpartum year, maybe they go see their primary care doctor once, if that.” Moon advises new fathers to make sure they look after themselves even as they're caring for their family. “You can't support other people if you're not feeling supported yourself or if you're not well,” she said. “I would advise paying attention to any kind of mental health concerns or symptoms that are coming up; I think that is really important.”“There are new mom groups that they can join, support groups, non-clinical groups, WhatsApp groups, etc.,” Moon said. “I think there's a growing ecosystem of that kind of resource for fathers, but not an entirely established one. So, to the extent that fathers can seek out that kind of support or even start them in their own communities, I think that would be beneficial." SOURCES: Karolinska Institute, news release, March 23, 2026; Dr. Khatiya Moon, medical director, collaborative care program, Northwell Health, New York City
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