Socioeconomic factors are becoming 'biologically embedded' in children's brains

A kid’s neighborhood leaves a telltale pattern in their brains A study of more than 2,300 9- to 10-year-olds found that socioeconomic factors explained most differences in the preteens' brain development. NPR Science LISTEN & FOLLOW Science Socioeconomic factors are becoming 'biologically embedded' in children's brains June 11, 20262:00 PM ET Jon Hamilton A new study finds that the socioeconomics of a preteen's neighborhood can leave a distinctive pattern in their brains. Andriy Onufriyenko/ hide caption toggle caption Andriy Onufriyenko/ The most powerful factors affecting a child's brain development involve socioeconomic opportunities, according to a study in the journal Science. The analysis of more than 2,300 9- and 10-year-olds found that environmental factors ranging from household income to education to neighborhood quality are associated with brain differences that can clearly be seen in MRI scans. For new discoveries, everyday mysteries, and the science behind the headlines, follow NPR’s Short Wave podcast. The researchers also found that preteens who'd grown up in neighborhoods with lower incomes and limited social support had brain differences associated with less sleep and more stress. Loading... "Something is going on in these neighborhoods," says Scott Marek, the study's first author and an assistant professor of radiology at WashU School of Medicine. "We need to find out how socioeconomics is becoming biologically embedded." Goats and Soda Can Poverty Lead To Mental Illness? The research "highlights the fact that the environment in which we grow up and live has powerful impacts on our brain," says Russell Poldrack, a psychology professor at Stanford University who was not involved in the study. It also challenges earlier research that focused on links between brain development and factors like IQ and mental health. TED Radio Hour , children's brains can look very different—and family income is a factor Those factors do appear to have a small influence on brain development, says Dr. Nico Dosenbach, an author of the new study and a professor at WashU Medicine in St. Louis. "But socioeconomics was, by a wide margin, absolutely the dominant variable," Dosenbach says. Shots - Health News How poverty and racism 'weather' the body, accelerating aging and disease As a result, some earlier studies linking cognitive performance to brain differences "may require re-evaluation," says Dr. Satterthwaite, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. Those studies focused on factors like IQ or mental health without accounting for socioeconomics, says Satterthwaite, who co-authored a perspective piece that accompanied the new study.