Child Poverty–Destruction of the Nation's Human CapitalChild Poverty and the Promise of Human Capacity: Childhood as a Foundation for Healthy Aging
Section snippets
Poverty, Deprivation, and Capabilities
Poverty implies deprivation. However, deprivation of what remains a complex and often controversial issue. Absolute notions of poverty recognize that at some level material deprivation can be so severe that it can undermine physical efficiency and ultimately result in death. Such absolute definitions of poverty often rely on nutrition as a core requirement, as does the official poverty line in the United States. Relative definitions stress the minimum levels of resources required for social
The Effect of Childhood Exposures on Adult Health
Although several recent reviews have underscored the wide variation in the time frames, social settings, and analytic strategies used to assess the relationship between childhood socioeconomic status and adult outcomes, a large majority of studies have revealed strong inverse associations between childhood status and adult patterns of morbidity and mortality.5, 6, 7, 8 In addition, recent arguments have suggested that the development of adult health and disease should be integrated into a
Fetal/Infant Exposures and Epigenetics
Although the evidence supporting the association of child poverty and later adult health is strong, the precise mechanisms by which this association is generated continue to be the focus of intense investigation. In many ways, the recent dramatic growth in life-course research was set in motion by a series of epidemiological studies by Barker and colleagues relating altered fetal growth to the risk of cardiovascular disease in adults.64, 65 It has been postulated that these relationships are
Translating the Evidence Base into Practice and Policy
The diversity and complexity of early influences on lifelong health suggests that there are likely a multitude of ways programmatic interventions and policies could improve child well-being and consequently enhance the potential for a healthy adulthood. However, there are 4 opportunities that deserve special attention, because they represent particularly promising uses of the child health community's strategic expertise as well as arenas that have been inadequately addressed or purposefully
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2023, SSM - Population HealthLow income and schizophrenia risk: A narrative review
2022, Behavioural Brain ResearchCitation Excerpt :Given the clear neurodevelopmental aspect of schizophrenia, susceptible neuronal maturation periods in a child’s life and adverse experiences during these periods play a crucial role in the etiology of the disorder [2,7,8]. Growing up under disadvantageous economic conditions poses a strong risk for affecting a child’s developmental trajectory and has been shown to affect health [91–93], brain development [94,95], educational and cognitive outcomes [93,96] and may promote problematic behaviors and affect socio-emotional functioning [93,96,97]. Here, we will explore the association between adverse, stress-inducing experiences during childhood and adolescence mediated by economic hardship, and the risk for developing schizophrenia.
The author reports no conflicts of interest.