Homelessness, neglect, malnutrition, or forced parent-child separation have long been known to cause toxic stress levels in childhood that harm developing brains and bodies.
Two decades ago, the link between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and long-lasting health effects surfaced in a pivotal study. Now, clinicians and researchers are taking a deep dive into how the stress produced by these experiences influences lifelong changes in children's genetics and health, while developing tools to combat negative health outcomes.
Dayna Long, MD, medical director for the Department of Community Health and Engagement at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland, for one, considers it unacceptable that some children face worse health outcomes simply because they were dealt a bad hand. She has been propelled to find ways to use health care settings as a buffer against toxic stress in order to help kids achieve better outcomes.
[For more on this story by Kate Vidinsky, go to https://medicalxpress.com/news...ldren-long-term.html]
For another story on a similar topic, see Understanding the Psychological Effects of Childhood Cancer.
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