Author: Lisa Rapaport
Reuters Health - Parents who endured “toxic stress” during childhood may be more likely to have kids with developmental delays and have a harder time coping with their children’s health issues, new research suggests.
Adverse childhood experiences, commonly called ACEs, can include witnessing parents fight or go through a divorce, having a parent with a mental illness or substance abuse problem, or suffering from sexual, physical or emotional abuse.
Previous research has linked these experiences to what’s known as toxic stress, or wear and tear on the body that leads to physical and mental health problems that often continue from one generation to the next.
“What we didn’t know is how these risks are “inherited,” or specifically what is the chain of events from a parent experiencing adversity in childhood to their own children experiencing adversity early in development,” Sheri Madigan of the University of Calgary and Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute in Canada said by email.
Madigan’s team studied 1,994 mothers and their infants. They focused on mothers’ ACEs and physical and mental health issues during and soon after pregnancy, and their babies’ development.
Madigan’s team studied 1,994 mothers and their infants. They focused on mothers’ ACEs and physical and mental health issues during and soon after pregnancy, and their babies’ development.
To read the full article, written by Lisa Rapaport,
Click on this title: Childhood `toxic stress’ leads to parenting challenges later on
From the article:
“The effect of a stable, nurturing relationship for a child is incredibly important to mitigating the effects of adversity, or ACEs,” Shah said by email. “For a parent with high ACEs, this may mean reaching out to someone to help them learn how to cope with daily stressors as well as making sure their children can find ways to cope with toxic stressors.”
Click on this title: Childhood `toxic stress’ leads to parenting challenges later on
From the article:
“The effect of a stable, nurturing relationship for a child is incredibly important to mitigating the effects of adversity, or ACEs,” Shah said by email. “For a parent with high ACEs, this may mean reaching out to someone to help them learn how to cope with daily stressors as well as making sure their children can find ways to cope with toxic stressors.”
SOURCE: bit.ly/2FWveSt, bit.ly/2FZxEjb and bit.ly/2pt3rSs Pediatrics, online March 20 and 21, 2018.
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