Harvard School of Public Health
  • Quicklinks
    • About the School
    • Academics
    • Admissions
    • Research
    • Faculty
    • Student Life
    • News
    • Alumni
    • Frontiers
    • Make A Gift
Menu
Search
Bridging science and policy decision-making.
The Forum at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health
Skip to content
  • We launched a new webpage. Find out more.
  • Past events
  • About

The Toxic Stress of Early Childhood Adversity
Rethinking Health and Education Policy

Summary

Evidence suggests that for the youngest children, prolonged or severe exposure to abuse, neglect and economic hardship – exacerbated by a dearth of stable, supportive relationships with adults – can provoke a “toxic stress response” with lifelong consequences. Such stress may influence brain development and increase the risk for illnesses such as heart disease and diabetes. While efforts have been made for decades to intervene early in children’s lives, the results have not always been resounding. This Forum event examined how health and education policies can be both harnessed and revamped to counteract early childhood adversity and included a discussion of a new policy statement, “Early Childhood Adversity, Toxic Stress, and the Role of the Pediatrician: Translating Developmental Science Into Lifelong Health,” issued by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Watch a brief video about core concepts in early development from the Harvard Center on the Developing Child.

Part of: Policy Controversies.

Background Articles

  • EARLY CHILDHOOD ADVERSITY, TOXIC STRESS, AND THE ROLE OF THE PEDIATRICIAN: TRANSLATING DEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE INTO LIFELONG HEALTH
    American Academy of Pediatrics Policy Statement
  • http://developingchild.harvard.edu/news/
    Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University
  • TOXIC STRESS INFORMATION FROM HARVARD CENTER ON THE DEVELOPING CHILD
    Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University
  • VIDEO: TOXIC STRESS DERAILS HEALTHY DEVELOPMENT
    Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University
  • OP/ED: A POVERTY SOLUTION THAT STARTS WITH A HUG
    New York Times
  • HEALTHY CHILDREN: THE BEST INVESTMENT
    Harvard Public Health Review

Image Credit: iStockphoto.com/gkomel.

Share this:FacebookTwitterLinkedInReddit

Post navigation

← The Supercommittee Collapse and America’s Healthcare Future Bird Flu Research →

Moderator

Abigail Trafford
Author and Former Health Editor, The Washington Post

Expert Participants

Jack Shonkoff
Director, Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, and Professor of Child Health and Development, Harvard School of Public Health

Robert Block
President, American Academy of Pediatrics

Roberto J. Rodríguez
Special Assistant to the President for Education Policy, The White House

Event Resources

  • Event Briefing
  • Download the MP3 Audio
  • English Transcript
Harvard School of Public Health
677 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02115
+1 (617) 495-1000
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
  • Instagram
  • iTunes
  • Harvard Chan Home
  • Contact Us
  • Harvard University Home
  • Make a Gift
  • Privacy Policy
  • Report Copyright Violation
  • Accessibility
Copyright © 2023 The President and Fellows of Harvard College