Stressed About Stress: Effects of Childhood and Adult Stressors
Finances, relationships, work, academics, careers. Stressed yet? Stress seems to have infiltrated the population, as the 2019 Gallup Global Emotions Report revealed that 55% of American adults are stressed. The prevalence of stress in society has dangerous implications because research shows that stress is linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity. It can also contribute to mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety. Oftentimes, stress is portrayed as something that only appears in teenagers, young adults, and adults. However, researchers have shown that young children can also experience stress at critical developmental periods. The effects of childhood stress can last well into adulthood, and they can combine with ongoing stressors to further exacerbate adult mental health. Little research has been conducted to evaluate the difference in the impact of stress during different stages of life, so researchers at the University of Minnesota conducted an experiment where they examined the interaction between childhood stress and adult stress.
The central question driving this study is whether the total accumulation of stress over a lifetime or an interaction between childhood stress at specific developmental stages and current stress has a greater impact on the body’s biological systems. Researchers want to discover if stressful events that happen during sensitive childhood periods can change how the body responds to stressors later in life. One of the body’s indicators that it is being harmed by stress is a flat cortisol slope. Usually, cortisol levels rise in the morning and slowly decline during the day. Cortisol is an important hormone that is released in response to stress, and irregular levels can disrupt the immune, nervous, and metabolic systems. Previous studies have established that flatter cortisol slopes predict long-term health problems, as flatter slopes suggest that the body’s various biological systems are dysregulated. Researchers took cortisol data from 90 participants whose lives followed the patterns of one of the three different stress models. These models include the cumulative life stress (general amount of stress in a lifetime), biological embedding (solely childhood stress), and sensitization (critical periods of childhood and adult stress) models. Scientists surveyed the level of disruption in the lives of children ages 12, 18, 30, 42, 54, and 64 months old by interviewing their mothers, and then subsequently interviewed the children themselves when they were 23, 26, 28, 32, 34, and 37 years old. By recording the adults’ adolescent experiences with current situations, scientists were able to compare the effects of childhood stress or adult stress alone, as well as the interaction between these two.
The central question driving this study is whether the total accumulation of stress over a lifetime or an interaction between childhood stress at specific developmental stages and current stress has a greater impact on the body’s biological systems. Researchers want to discover if stressful events that happen during sensitive childhood periods can change how the body responds to stressors later in life. One of the body’s indicators that it is being harmed by stress is a flat cortisol slope. Usually, cortisol levels rise in the morning and slowly decline during the day. Cortisol is an important hormone that is released in response to stress, and irregular levels can disrupt the immune, nervous, and metabolic systems. Previous studies have established that flatter cortisol slopes predict long-term health problems, as flatter slopes suggest that the body’s various biological systems are dysregulated. Researchers took cortisol data from 90 participants whose lives followed the patterns of one of the three different stress models. These models include the cumulative life stress (general amount of stress in a lifetime), biological embedding (solely childhood stress), and sensitization (critical periods of childhood and adult stress) models. Scientists surveyed the level of disruption in the lives of children ages 12, 18, 30, 42, 54, and 64 months old by interviewing their mothers, and then subsequently interviewed the children themselves when they were 23, 26, 28, 32, 34, and 37 years old. By recording the adults’ adolescent experiences with current situations, scientists were able to compare the effects of childhood stress or adult stress alone, as well as the interaction between these two.
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The results supported the sensitization model, as adults who experienced childhood stress with current stress had a flatter cortisol pattern compared to those in the other two stress models. This shows that stress early in life can have permanent effects on the body’s reaction to stress in the future. The implications of lasting changes to the body’s stress response plays an essential role in building upon current healthcare practices. It is vital that physicians and mental health organizations continue to educate people, especially children, about the negative consequences of stress on physical and mental health. Mental health organizations can hold campaigns to raise further awareness about children and stress. An emphasis should be placed on preventative care in order to improve the trajectory of people’s lives. It may be helpful for parents to pay close attention to how their child is acting and provide as much support as they can. For all ages, leading a healthy lifestyle is a practical solution that can shape a happier state of mind.
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