study , led by Dr. Najaaraq Lund , of Aarhus University , in Denmark , found that babies whose mothers had taken SSRIs were born earlier and were more likely to require treatment in an NICU . Women have been using SSRIs during pregnancy since the early 1990s , Lund and her colleagues point out in the report , which is published in the October issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine . These drugs , which include Zoloft , Prozac , and others , are widely considered to be the safest type of antidepressant medication to take during pregnancy . It 's been difficult to confirm their safety , however , especially since investigators have to find a way to distinguish between the effects of depression itself -- and habits that depressed women may be more likely to engage in , like drinking and smoking -- and the drug on the newborn . Health.com : Do pregnancy and bipolar disorder mix ? Lund and her colleagues tackled this issue by including a group of women who reported a history of some type of psychiatric illness but were n't taking SSRIs . Some , but not all , of
-LRB- Health.com -RRB- -- More than one in 10 women develops depression during pregnancy . Now , a new study suggests that women who are treated with antidepressants are more likely to give birth early or to have newborns that need to spend time in a neonatal intensive care unit . Babies of women taking SSRIs were born earlier and were more likely to have been admitted to intensive care . Depression itself can have ill effects for both mom and baby . Therefore , the benefits of the antidepressants -- known as selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors -- may still outweigh the risks for some women , researchers say . `` There is no easy way out of this , '' says Dr. Tim Oberlander , a developmental pediatrician at BC Children 's Hospital , in Vancouver , Canada , who has studied the effects of SSRIs on children exposed in the womb , but was not involved in the current study . `` Depression needs to be managed , and for some women , the use of these medications is appropriate and necessary . '' Health.com : 3 Signs you should stop , adjust , or switch antidepressants The new