Moms Aren’t Doing So Great, According to a Massive New Study

Being a mom has never been known for its abundance of uninterrupted sleep and leisurely afternoons. But a massive study is suggesting something more serious is happening.

Researchers examined self-reported maternal mental and physical health among nearly 200,000 U.S. mothers over 8 years, and the results weren't great. In 2016, 38.4% of mothers said their maternal mental health was excellent. But, by 2023, that number had fallen to 25.8%.

Meanwhile, the percentage of mothers reporting fair or poor mental health rose from 5.5% to 8.5%. So, what's happening to our moms?

Researchers Looked at Nearly 200,000 Mothers

The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, collected data from 2016 to 2023 through the National Survey of Children's Health. The researchers included information from 198,417 biological or adoptive mothers of children ages 17 and younger. 

Collectively, the weighted sample represented more than 42 million U.S. mothers. Rather than diagnosing participants with a particular condition, the researchers looked at how mothers rated their own physical and mental health.

They could choose from four answers:

• Excellent

• Very good

• Good

• Fair or poor

Throughout those eight years, mothers' mental health ratings moved in the wrong direction.

Excellent Mental Health Took a Pretty Big Hit

This is where the numbers were particularly striking. In 2016, mothers rated their mental health this way:

• Excellent: 38.4%

• Very Good: 37.2%

• Good: 18.8%

• Fair or Poor: 5.5%

By 2023:

• Excellent: 25.8%

• Very Good: 39.6%

• Good: 26.1%

• Fair or Poor: 8.5%

Even after the researchers adjusted for changes in the demographics of mothers over time, the decline remained. Excellent mental health dropped by an adjusted 12.4 percentage points, while fair or poor mental health increased by 3.5 points.

In other words, by 2023, roughly 1 in 12 mothers in the study reported fair or poor mental health.

This Wasn't Just a COVID Problem

It's tempting to look at a study covering 2016 through 2023 and point a finger at the pandemic. COVID certainly didn't send anyone's parenting stress in a relaxing direction.

But the researchers found that the downward trend in excellent mental health had already begun before the pandemic. Their analysis also estimated that less than half of the increase in poor or fair mental health coincided with the onset of COVID-19.

So, the pandemic may be part of the story, but it’s not the entire story.

Some Moms Are Struggling More Than Others

The decline in the mental health of mothers wasn't confined to one income level or demographic group. The researchers found worsening mental health among multiple socioeconomic groups.

That said, some mothers consistently reported worse health. The odds of reporting fair or poor mental health were higher among mothers who were single parents, younger, had less education, or had children who were publicly insured or uninsured.

Physical health showed disparities, too. Overall, though, the physical-health changes were much smaller. Excellent physical health fell from 28% to 23.9%, while the percentage with fair or poor physical health didn't change significantly.

The much bigger story was mental health.

So, Why Are Moms Struggling?

Here's the frustrating part: the study can't tell us why. Because this was a repeated cross-sectional analysis of survey data, the researchers could identify trends and associations, but they couldn't establish what caused them.

Instead, they highlighted other explanations like:

• Social isolation

• Limited access to mental health care

• Substance use

• Inflation

• Income inequality

• Racism

• Gun violence

• Climate change

While those are possible contributors, they’re not a checklist of reasons why moms are hurting.

Moms May Need More Attention, Not More Advice

The researchers in this study say more work is needed to understand why maternal health is declining and how to improve it.

Perhaps the takeaway isn't that moms need another wellness routine, a better planner, or 15 minutes of self-care squeezed between dinner and bedtime. Nearly 200,000 mothers were asked how they were doing and, over time, fewer and fewer were able to say, "Excellent."

Whatever the solution may be, that's worth listening to so that, collectively, we can figure out how to make things better. 

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