Bad Childhood Experiences Linked To Adult Mental Disorders

The first six years of a child's life could be indicative of the level of brain growth during the adolescence period. In a new study published by JAMA Pediatrics, it was revealed that the increased risk of the development of internalizing symptoms and an altered structure of the brain both have links to the adversities one encounter early in life.

The study, titled Imaging study looks at brain effects of early adversity, mental health disorders, reveals that the changes in the brain structure of a person are influenced directly and indirectly by the continuously changing levels of "childhood internalizing symptoms." According to the research team, the unpleasant experiences gone through by a child could provide an explanation on the distinctions found in the cortical gray matter volume in the brains of the adolescents. The study was conducted by Edward D. Barker, Ph.D., of King's College London and his peers.

"Adversity during the first six years of life was associated with higher levels of childhood internalizing symptoms, such as depression and anxiety, in a group of boys, as well as altered brain structure in late adolescence between the ages of 18 and 21," Dr. Barker and his team wrote in the official press release. In explaining the relevance of the study, they shared, "Early adversity is an important risk factor that relates to internalizing symptoms and altered brain structure."

According to the press release, the team looked into 494 pairs of mother and son. Describing the disposition of the sons, the authors shared that the boys "went through traumatic experiences through the first six years of their lives, and also took on "internalizing symptoms (depressive and/or anxiety)" when they went through seven, 10 and 13 years." Dr. Barker and his group then collected imaging data from the MRIs of these sons during their late adolescence stage. The researchers found that "due to early adversity, there were changes brain structure, while the "childhood internalizing symptoms" led to less gray matter volume in the brain."

The author's then concluded, "The finding that childhood experiences can affect the brain highlights early childhood not only as a period of vulnerability but also a period of opportunity." Dr. Barker and the group went on to point out, "Interventions toward adversity might help to prevent children from developing internalizing symptoms and protect against abnormal brain development."

The researchers also noted some limitations to the study presented which included the fact that only male adolescents were considered in the research.