Associations between childhood family stress and systemic inflammation in adulthood: Contributions of pubertal timing and waist circumference in adolescence.

Childhood Economic Mobility and Systemic Inflammation Among Men Who Experienced Low Income in Toddlerhood: The Moderating Role of Trait Hostility.

OBJECTIVE Childhood economic upward mobility (i.e., increases in family income across childhood) may attenuate links between childhood poverty and systemic inflammation in adulthood, the extent of which may vary depending on inter-individual differences in personality characteristics, including hostility. METHODS N=171 men who experienced low income in toddlerhood were followed prospectively into adulthood. Annual family income was collected 12 times when men were 1.5-17 years old. Men completed the Cook-Medley Hostility Scale and had their fasting blood drawn to measure circulating levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) at age 32. Multiple linear regression analyses examined main and moderation effects of childhood economic upward mobility and adult hostility on CRP levels adjusting for income at 1.5 years, race, parent educational attainment, and adult income, education, waist circumference, and smoking status. RESULTS Main effects were non-significant, but an interaction effect emerged. Counter to expectations, childhood economic upward mobility related to greater adult CRP as trait hostility decreased (𝛽=-0.203, P=0.018). Simple slope analyses further revealed that childhood economic upward mobility was positively associated with CRP among men lower in hostility (𝛽=0.23, SE=0.09, P=0.020) but was unrelated to CRP among men higher in hostility. Results of post-hoc sensitivity analyses are also discussed. CONCLUSIONS Counterintuitive findings suggest that for men who experience poverty in toddlerhood, the association between childhood economic upward mobility and adult CRP may be nuanced and even in the positive direction for men low in hostility, which aligns with work on unintended health consequences of upward mobility.

Association between early-life food insecurity and depressive symptom trajectories in middle-aged and older adults: The mediating role of educational attainment.

BACKGROUND While the long-term impact of childhood adversity on mental health in middle and old age is receiving increasing attention, the association between food insecurity at different early-life stages and the dynamic trajectories of depressive symptoms remains unclear. The potential mediating role of educational attainment in this relationship also warrants investigation. METHODS Utilizing data from the nationally representative China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), this study included 4546 participants aged 45 and above with complete information. Based on retrospective data, early-life food insecurity was categorized into distinct periods: Early Childhood (0-5 years), Middle Childhood (6-12 years), Adolescence (13-17 years), and Multiple periods. Group-based trajectory modeling was employed to identify developmental trajectories of depressive symptoms from 2011 to 2020. A counterfactual framework-based mediation model was used to analyze the mediating effect of educational attainment. Stratified analyses were conducted by gender and residence. RESULTS Five distinct depressive symptom trajectories were identified. Early-life food insecurity, particularly exposure during Middle Childhood (OR range: 1.34-2.03) and Multiple periods (OR range: 1.51-2.81), significantly increased the risk of belonging to non-stable, high-risk depressive trajectories. Mediation analysis revealed that educational attainment played a significant mediating role in the association between food insecurity during Middle Childhood, Adolescence, Multiple periods, and the risk of adverse depressive trajectories. The indirect effect values were 0.009, 0.007, and 0.010, accounting for 9.83%, 10.82%, and 7.14% of the total effect, respectively. Exploratory subgroup analyses suggested that these associations were more pronounced among females and rural residents. CONCLUSION Early-life food insecurity, especially during middle childhood or across multiple developmental periods, was associated with less favorable depressive symptom trajectories in later life. Education explained only a modest share of these associations, suggesting multiple life-course pathways linking childhood deprivation to later-life mental health.

Sleep as a mediator between childhood trauma and psychopathology in early adolescence: Evidence from the ABCD study.

BACKGROUND Although the association between childhood trauma and psychopathology is well established, the mechanisms underlying this link remain complex. Sleep is a multidimensional construct that has been implicated in the pathway; less is known about the period of early adolescence or which sleep facets matter. METHODS Participants (N = 4108) were from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) cohort. Baseline childhood trauma load was assessed via caregiver report. Objective Fitbit sleep metrics were assessed two years later, including average duration, timing, social jetlag, wake after sleep onset (WASO), and duration and timing variability. Internalizing and externalizing symptoms were assessed via youth report at 3-year follow-up. Models adjusted for sociodemographic covariates and prior psychopathology at 2-year follow-up. Separate mediation models tested each sleep facet as a mediator. RESULTS Higher baseline trauma load predicted worse sleep health at 2-year follow-up across all sleep metrics. Shorter average sleep duration, greater social jetlag, and later average bedtimes at the 2-year follow-up predicted higher internalizing and externalizing symptoms at the 3-year follow-up, even after adjusting for prior psychopathology and covariates. Sleep duration and social jetlag mediated associations between trauma load and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Average bedtime mediated the relationship with internalizing but not externalizing symptoms. All effects were small in magnitude. Average wake time, sleep variability, and WASO were not significant mediators. CONCLUSIONS Sleep partially but weakly mediates the longitudinal relationship between trauma and youth psychopathology. Findings highlight that multiple facets of sleep may contribute modestly to this relationship and be a potential target for intervention.

A prospective examination of the role of psychosocial factors as mediators between childhood maltreatment and cognitive impairment in late midlife

Childhood maltreatment is associated with increased risk for cognitive impairment. We examined whether psychosocial factors (socioeconomic status, education, depression, social support, social isolation) explained this relationship. In a prospective longitudinal study, children with documented histories of maltreatment and demographically matched controls were followed for over 30 years. Psychosocial variables were assessed in young adulthood ( N  = 1196, M age  = 29), and cognitive impairment no dementia (CIND) was assessed in late midlife ( N  = 447, M age  = 59.4). Analyses included logistic regression and structural equation modeling. Childhood maltreatment and higher levels of social isolation increased risk for CIND, whereas higher socioeconomic status (SES), education, and depression symptoms in young adulthood decreased risk for CIND. Social support was not associated with CIND. Education and SES partially mediated the relationship between childhood maltreatment and CIND. Increasing educational opportunities for maltreated children may improve SES and reduce risk for CIND and dementia.

The Role of Maternal Mental Health in Early Development: Evidence from High Altitude Peru

Depressive Symptoms in 5–6-Year-Old Children: The Role of Family Resilience and Family Functioning

This study examined the relationships between depressive symptoms observed in children aged 5–6 and two family-related variables: family resilience and perceived family functioning. Using a quantitative correlational survey design, the study was conducted with 255 parents selected through criterion sampling and voluntary participation. Data were collected through the Childhood Depressive Symptom Assessment Scale, the Family Resilience Scale, and the Perceived Family Functioning Scale. Following assumption testing, Pearson correlation, multiple linear regression, and a three-step hierarchical multiple regression analysis controlling for demographic variables were performed. The findings indicated that several subdimensions of family resilience and family functioning were significantly associated with distinct patterns of depressive symptoms in children. In particular, self-efficacy and commitment to life emerged as more salient components of family resilience, whereas intra-familial communication and positive affect, together with boundaries, stood out as stronger predictors within family functioning. Overall, the results suggest that family processes in early childhood are meaningfully related to children’s depressive symptoms and underscore the importance of family-focused preventive and supportive interventions.