Career women who are pregnant should be careful to avoid stress especially in the first 12 weeks, public health expert Koos van der Velden told MPs on Wednesday, the Telegraaf reports.

Van der Velden is chairman of the working group looking into the pre- and perinatal death rates in the Netherlands, which are among the highest in Europe.
Recent research shows babies are very vulnerable to their mother’s stress during the first three months in the womb, he said. In fact, the effect of stress can be as serious as smoking during pregnancy, he was quoted as saying.