Childhood stress can have long-term consequences on the brain
| Nov 11, 2018, 07:00 IST
Researchers have always maintained that stress can cause severe damage. And if they can cause much damage to an adult, you can only imagine how damaging stress can be for a child. A recent study was conducted to understand the targets of childhood stress and the findings were presented at Neuroscience 2018, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.
The research stated that stress during childhood can have long-term consequences for the brain, from increasing the likelihood of brain disorders and affecting an individual's response to stress as an adult to changing the nutrients a mother may pass on to her babies in the womb. It also increases the chances of the individual developing anxiety, depression, or drug addiction later in life by two to four times. Also, a mother's tress during pregnancy may increase the child's risk of developing autism spectrum disorder, as well as several other psychiatric illnesses.
"The research demonstrates the long-lasting and far-reaching effects of stress during early development, from the populations of bacteria in the gut to the way DNA is folded in the nucleus," said press conference moderator Heather Brenhouse, of Northeastern University. "Understanding how stress impacts developing biological systems may lead to new, patient-specific approaches to treatment and better outcomes," Brenhouse added.
The research stated that stress during childhood can have long-term consequences for the brain, from increasing the likelihood of brain disorders and affecting an individual's response to stress as an adult to changing the nutrients a mother may pass on to her babies in the womb. It also increases the chances of the individual developing anxiety, depression, or drug addiction later in life by two to four times. Also, a mother's tress during pregnancy may increase the child's risk of developing autism spectrum disorder, as well as several other psychiatric illnesses.
"The research demonstrates the long-lasting and far-reaching effects of stress during early development, from the populations of bacteria in the gut to the way DNA is folded in the nucleus," said press conference moderator Heather Brenhouse, of Northeastern University. "Understanding how stress impacts developing biological systems may lead to new, patient-specific approaches to treatment and better outcomes," Brenhouse added.