NIH STUDY SUGGESTS ASSOCIATION BETWEEN MOTHERS' EXPERIENCES OF MALTREATMENT IN THEIR OWN CHILDHOOD TO THEIR CHILDREN'S HEALTH OUTCOMES

DURHAM, N.C., Feb. 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Children of mothers who experienced childhood abuse or neglect may have a higher risk for developing asthma, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, and certain mental health issues, according to a study funded by the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes Program (ECHO) at the National Institutes of Health.

This research suggests that a mother's history of being abused or neglected as a child may increase their child's risk for developing one or more of these health outcomes at once. Daughters of these mothers may also be more likely to develop obesity, the study found, as compared to sons.

"Asking parents about their childhood experiences during prenatal and pediatric care, identifying parents with a history of childhood abuse or neglect, and offerin­­­­g counseling and support to those parents could help improve health outcomes for their children," said Claudia Buss, PhD, an ECHO Program investigator at the University of California, Irvine and Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin.

The researchers surveyed 4,337 mothers from 21 ECHO cohorts across the U.S. on their childhood experiences. About 44 percent of these mothers reported childhood abuse or neglect. The researchers also collected data on the rates of diagnosis for a number of physical and mental conditions among the children of mothers participating in the study.

Dr. Buss and Nora K. Moog, PhD of Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin led this collaborative research published in The Lancet Public Health.

Buss, C. et al. Intergenerational transmission of the consequences of maternal exposure to childhood maltreatment – a United States nationwide observational study of multiple cohorts in the ECHO program. The Lancet Public Health. DOI: 10.1016/S2468-2667(23)00025-7

About ECHO: ECHO is a nationwide research program supported by the NIH. Launched in 2016, ECHO aims to enhance the health of children for generations to come. ECHO investigators study the effects of a broad range of early environmental influences on child health and development. For more information, visit echochildren.org.

About the NIH: NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information, visit www.nih.gov.

SOURCE NIH Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program