Early Childhood Stimulation Benefits Adult Competence and Reduces Violent Behavior

Walker, Susan; Chang, Susan M.; Vera‐Hernández, Marcos; Grantham‐McGregor, Sally

doi:10.1542/peds.2010-2231

Cited by 264 publications

(219 citation statements)

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“…Our findings are also consistent with outcome studies in less developed countries, which consistently report lower educational attainment and income levels in adults who suffered from malnutrition or poor weight gain in the first 2 years of life. 2,3,[32][33][34] Because the participants in the Barbados cohort were rehabilitated and their health and development monitored after the malnutrition episode, these findings can more confidently be attributed to the history of infant malnutrition and not to subsequent health impairment. 13 The long-term outcomes of malnourished children growing up in less favorable conditions are therefore likely to be poorer than those seen in the Barbados sample.…”

Section: Figurementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Prenatal and childhood undernutrition predict poorer functional outcomes in adulthood, including fewer years of schooling and reduced income levels. 2,3 An epidemiologic analysis of 5 pooled birth cohorts from low-and middle-income countries indicated, moreover, that weight gain during the first 2 years of life predicts educational attainment, 4 whereas weight gain between 2 and 4 years does not, highlighting the particular vulnerability of infants. Even in populations exposed to famine, where the malnutrition was presumably of limited duration, exposed infants are at increased risk for compromised educational attainment and earning potential as adults.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…5,6 Because nutritional insults typically occur in a context of poverty and social disadvantage, distinguishing the effects of malnutrition per se from of the more global impacts of poverty can be challenging. 1,7,8 Studies have typically used markers such as maternal schooling or father' s occupation near birth, providing only a limited estimate of childhood socioeconomic influences (although the Jamaica study, 2 which assessed crowding and household possessions, is an exception). Further complicating the interpretation of outcomes is the high prevalence of chronic undernutrition in severely impoverished environments.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Socioeconomic Outcomes in Adults Malnourished in the First Year of Life: A 40-Year Study

et al. 2012

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WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: Infant malnutrition is known to be associated with behavioral and cognitive impairment throughout childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. However, controlled studies addressing adult outcomes in middle life, including earning potential, educational attainment, and standard of living, are limited. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:A discrete episode of moderate to severe malnutrition in infancy, with good rehabilitation thereafter, is associated with lower adult social status and a widening income gap relative to healthy controls, partially attributable to cognitive impairment in the previously malnourished. abstract OBJECTIVE: Lifelong functional, adaptive, and economic outcomes of moderate to severe infantile malnutrition are not well known. We assessed social status and income at midlife in a cohort of Barbadian adults, hospitalized for protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) during the first year of life, with good nutrition and health thereafter, in the context of a 40-year longitudinal case-control study. We also examined to what extent childhood IQ mediated any group differences.METHODS: Educational achievement, occupational status, and standard of living were assessed by the Hollingshead scales and a sitespecific Ecology Questionnaire in Barbadian adults (aged 37-43 years) with a history of malnutrition (n = 80) and a matched healthy control group (n = 63), classmates of the index cases. Malnutrition effects, adjusted for childhood standard of living, were estimated by longitudinal multiple regression analyses, with and without childhood IQ, in the models.RESULTS: PEM predicted poorer socioeconomic outcomes with medium to large effect sizes (0.50-0.94), but childhood IQ substantially attenuated the magnitude of these effects (adjusted effect sizes: 0.17-0.34). The gap in weekly household income between the PEM and control groups increased substantially over the life span (P , .001).CONCLUSIONS: Moderate to severe PEM during the first year of life with adequate nutrition and health care thereafter is associated with significant depression of socioeconomic outcomes in adulthood, mediated in part by cognitive compromise in affected individuals. This finding underscores the potential long-term economic burden of infant malnutrition, which is of major concern given the continued high prevalence of malnutrition worldwide. Pediatrics 2012;130:e1-e7 AUTHORS:

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Socioeconomic Outcomes in Adults Malnourished in the First Year of Life: A 40-Year Study

et al. 2012

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“…Nutrition interventions alone provide short-term, but only limited longterm benefits for brain and behavior functions. However, providing good nutrition in combination with a program of psychosocial and or cognitive stimulation 24,25 resulted in reduced levels of aggression and better educational achievement in adolescence and in young adulthood. The long-term benefits of these types of interventions, especially combined approaches, are just now being studied in large-scale clinical trials.…”

Section: The Impact Of Nutrition On Neurodevelopment During Adolescencementioning

confidence: 99%

Neurodevelopment: The Impact of Nutrition and Inflammation During Adolescence in Low-Resource Settings

Galler

Koethe

Yolken³

2017

Pediatrics

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Approximately 1 out of 5 children worldwide suffers from childhood malnutrition or stunting and associated health conditions, including an increased susceptibility to infections and inflammation. Due to improved early interventions, most children even in low-resource settings now survive early childhood malnutrition, yet exhibit continuing evidence of neurodevelopmental deficits, including poor school achievement and behavioral problems. These conditions are compounded in children who continue to be undernourished throughout the adolescent years. At present, these sequelae of malnutrition and infection are of major concern in the adolescent population, given that young people between the ages of 10 and 24 years represent nearly one-quarter of the world’s population. Therefore, there is an urgent need to focus on the well-being of this age group and, in particular, on behavioral, cognitive, and brain disorders of adolescents who experienced malnutrition, infection, and inflammation prenatally, in early childhood, and during adolescence itself. Because one-third of all women globally become pregnant during their adolescent years, brain and behavioral disorders during this period can have an intergenerational impact, affecting the health and well-being of the next generation. This article summarizes the current state of knowledge and evidence gaps regarding childhood and adolescent malnutrition and inflammation and their impact on adolescent neurodevelopment, the limited evidence regarding nutrition and psychosocial interventions, and the role of resilience and protective factors in this age group. This overview should help to inform the development of new strategies to improve the neurodevelopmental outcomes of high risk adolescent populations.

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“…Walker, Chang, Vera-Hernández, and Grantham-McGregor (2011) examined the effectiveness of an early child development program using longitudinal data in Jamaica and showed that participants reported less involvement in fights and violent behaviors in adulthood as compared to nonparticipants.…”

mentioning

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Comprehensive assessment of youth violence in five Caribbean countries: Gender and age differences

Gentle-Genitty

Kim

et al. 2017

Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment

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Early Childhood Stimulation Benefits Adult Competence and Reduces Violent Behavior

Cited by 264 publications

References 39 publications

Socioeconomic Outcomes in Adults Malnourished in the First Year of Life: A 40-Year Study

Socioeconomic Outcomes in Adults Malnourished in the First Year of Life: A 40-Year Study

Neurodevelopment: The Impact of Nutrition and Inflammation During Adolescence in Low-Resource Settings

Comprehensive assessment of youth violence in five Caribbean countries: Gender and age differences

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