According to an article published in the Journal of Psychosomatic Research, it states that Babies born between three and six months after the September 11 attacks weighed an average of 50 grams less than usual.
One of the authors of the report, Gerard Essed, professor of obstetrics at the University of Maastricht (Holland), "the impact of September 11 was so enormous that it affected virtually everyone."
"In the case of (Dutch) women, the impact was magnified by the emotions normally associated with pregnancy. There was a very, very clear correlation, which surprised us greatly," explains the expert.
Other research has indicated that in New York, women who were in the Twin Towers or approached the day of the attacks, gave birth to babies up to 120 grams smaller than average. It was attributed to stress and large amounts of ingested dust. Doctors attributed that weight loss to stress and to the large amounts of dust and other particles concentrated in the air that those women breathed.
Babies who were in the womb on September 11, 2001 weighed on average 48 grams less than those in the second group, and scientists attribute the difference to high levels of cortisol, a hormone related to stress and anxiety.
That hormone, which helps eliminate fat, can be transferred from the mother to the fetus and thus result in weight loss.
Stress can also cause a loss of appetite and lead to constriction of blood vessels, which decreases the blood supply of the fetus and can inhibit its development.
