By K.C. Compton, Early Learning Nation, March 3, 2022
Babies and small children might not immediately come to mind when we think about people dealing with chronic stress. But they are—millions of them. Most recently, of course, COVID-19 has taken its toll, as families at all income levels have been hit with one stressor after another, from job loss to child care catastrophes to the loss of social time and even of loved ones and family members. It’s a lot for anyone to deal with.
Equally concerning and more deeply entrenched is the chronic stress associated with poverty—and that, too, affects millions of U.S. children. According to U.S. Census data in 2019, nearly one in six U.S. infants, toddlers and preschoolers lived in poverty, which in itself represents a form of chronic stress. Almost half that number are living in extreme poverty, which is an annual income of around $13,200 for a family of four. Children of color in the U.S. have been particularly vulnerable to child poverty, with Black and Hispanic children experiencing some of the highest poverty rates in the country.
Families in poverty deal with a cascade of stressful circumstances—unstable housing, financial insecurity, mental health issues, substance abuse and other forms of adversity—that add up and often don’t let up, hence “chronic.” The body’s automatic response in trying to adapt to this ongoing adversity means that even small children can experience changes in their brain chemistry that dramatically affect their attention and behavior.
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