Childhood Trauma as a Medical Problem: One Doctor's Crusade [TheTakeaway.org]

When she first opened her pediatric practice in the Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco, Dr. Nadine Burke Harris realized that her patients' needs went far beyond routine childhood vaccinations and check-ups. 

According to the 2010 Census, approximately 30 percent of Bayview-Hunters Point's children live in poverty. Many suffer from the problems that often go along with poverty: abuse, neglect, uncertainty about food and housing.

The clinic, now known as the Center for Youth Wellness, opened in 2007 in the midst of great strides in neuroscience research. As Dr. Burke Harris tells The Takeaway's John Hockenberry, this research demonstrates that childhood trauma—what Burke Harris's team calls "toxic stress"—dramatically influences future brain development and future medical health. 

To listen to the interview, go to: http://www.thetakeaway.org/sto...th-effects-children/