Mothers who get flu during pregnancy are FOUR TIMES more likely to have a child with bipolar disorder Women who get flu during pregnancy have a 4% chance of having baby who develops bipolar disorder Experts think this could be because mother's immune response to the illness affects the baby's development Women who get flu during pregnancy are more likely to have a baby who develops bipolar disorder in later life, according to new research. Scientists at the Columbia University Medical Centre, in New York, found that women who had flu during pregnancy were four times more likely to have a child with the disorder. However, they reassured parents-to-be that the risk is very low. Women who get flu during pregnancy are more likely to have a baby who develops bipolar disorder in later life The BBC reports that the researchers studied 814 pregnant women and found a connection between bipolar disorder diagnosed during the teenage years and the twenties and flu during pregnancy. The scientists studied people born in the 1960s and found that those whose mothers suffered from flu while they were pregnant were four times more likely to develop bipolar disorder. The condition, which causes extreme mood swings ranging from deep depressions to manic episodes, affects about one in 100 people. The study's lead researcher, Professor Alan Brown, believes that women who have flu during pregnancy have a three to four per cent chance of having a child who develops bipolar disorder. However, he told the BBC that women should not be alarmed about the findings as the chance of bipolar disorder is still small. The researchers do not know why flu has this effect. The researchers are warning parents-to-be not to be alarmed as the chance of having a child who develops bipolar disorder is still very low They believe that it does not directly affect the baby but that the mother's immune response to the illness could have an impact upon a foetus" development. Previous research has also shown a link between autism and flu during pregnancy. Scientists at Denmark's University of Aarhus found that children were slightly more likely to be diagnosed with the condition before the age of three if their mother had the flu while pregnant.