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Adversity-induced GI issues in youth may predict future psychopathology

Bridget Callaghan

Researchers found that adversity early in life was associated with increased gastrointestinal symptoms in children and that this adversity-induced gastrointestinal distress was associated with future psychopathology, according to data published in Development and Psychopathology.

"The role of trauma in increasing vulnerability to both gastrointestinal and mental health symptoms is well established in adults but rarely studied in childhood," Bridget Callaghan, PhD, post-doctoral research fellow, department of psychology, Columbia University, said in a press release.

To examine adversity–gastrointestinal–anxiety interactions during human development, researchers analyzed data from youth who were raised by their biological parents or were exposed to early adverse caregiving experiences (such as international adoption after foster care) in two studies.

In the first study, Callaghan and colleagues evaluated whether adversity was tied to gastrointestinal (GI) issues and whether GI issues were tied to concurrent anxiety and/or future anxiety in 344 youth aged 3 to 18 years. In the second proof-of-concept study, they looked at the microbiome–brain associations following adversity during middle childhood in a smaller sample taken from the first study’s population.

Analysis indicated that adverse care experiences in childhood was linked to a range of GI symptoms (beta = 0.28; P = .016) in the first study, including gastrointestinal distress (like aches, pains and nausea) and digestive distress (like vomiting and constipation). Callaghan and colleagues found a link between gastrointestinal symptoms and anxiety measured across 5 years (beta = 0.08; P < .0001). Using cross-sectional data, the researchers also observed that GI distress mediated the link between early adversity and increased anxiety symptoms.

In the second study, the researchers evaluated a subsample of 16 patients from study 1 who provided a stool sample and functional MRI of the brain. They observed that the gastrointestinal microbiome was altered by childhood experiences of adverse caregiving, and that this change in the microbiome was tied to brain reactivity within the prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate cortex and precuneus — the brain networks related to emotion.

"Animal studies tell us that dietary interventions and probiotics can manipulate the gut microbiome and ameliorate the effects of adversity on the central nervous system, especially during the first years of life when the developing brain and microbiome are more plastic,” Callaghan said in the press release. “It is possible that this type of research will help us to know if and how to best intervene in humans, and when.” – by Savannah Demko

Disclosures: Callaghan reports support from the American Australian Association Fellowship, the National Health and Medical Research Council Early Career Fellowship and a NIMH grant. Please see the study for all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.

Editor's note: This story was updated April 8, 2019.