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Childhood adversity increases risk for depression, anxiety symptoms in young men

Males who experienced adversity early in life had higher levels of depression and anxiety symptoms and altered brain structure as young men, according to study findings in JAMA Pediatrics.

“Adversity early in life is associated with both altered brain structure and increased risk of developing internalizing symptoms (ie, depression, anxiety). Previous studies have shown that childhood adversity, including stressful life events, maltreatment, abuse and domestic violence, are associated with structural variation in gray matter in the brain. The effect of early adversity on the brain has long been suggested to relate to neurobiological sequelae associated with excessive stress,” Sarah K. G. Jensen, MSc, of King’s College, London, and colleagues wrote.

To determine associations between adversities within the first 6 years of life, internalizing symptoms (ie, depression and anxiety) during childhood and early adolescence, and cortical gray matter volume in late adolescence, researchers assessed data for a community-based birth cohort of 494 mother-son pairs in England. Children were born between April 1991 and December 1992 and neuroimaging data were collected between September 2010 and November 2012.

Early adversity was directly associated with lower gray matter volumes in the anterior cingulate cortex (P = .01) and higher gray matter volume in the precuneus (P = .009).

Internalizing symptoms during childhood were associated with lower grey matter volume in the right superior frontal gyrus (P = .002). Early adversity was linked to higher levels of internalizing symptoms (P < .001), which were indirectly associated with lower superior frontal gyrus volume (P = .02).

“The finding that childhood experiences can affect the brain highlights early childhood not only as a period of vulnerability but also as a period of opportunity. Interventions toward adversity might help to prevent children from developing internalizing symptoms and protect against abnormal brain development,” the researchers wrote. – by Amanda Oldt

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.