Biological Aging in Childhood and Adolescence Following Experiences of Threat and Deprivation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Open accessPreprint — published as 10.1037/bul0000270 · Paper page
Abstract
Life history theory argues that exposure to early-life adversity (ELA) accelerates development, although existing evidence for this varies. We present a meta-analysis and systematic review testing the hypothesis that ELA involving threat (e.g., violence exposure) will be associated with accelerated biological aging across multiple metrics, whereas exposure to deprivation (e.g., neglect, institutional rearing) and low-socioeconomic status (SES) will not. We meta-analyze 46 studies (n=64,925) examining associations of ELA with pubertal timing and cellular aging (telomere length and DNA methylation age), systematically review 19 studies (n=2276) examining ELA and neural markers of accelerated development (cortical thickness and amygdala-prefrontal cortex functional connectivity) and evaluate whether associations of ELA with biological aging vary according to the nature of adversity experienced. ELA overall was associated with accelerated pubertal timing (d=-0.12) and cellular aging (d=-0.32). Moderator analysis revealed that ELA characterized by threat (d=-0.26), but not deprivation or SES, was associated with accelerated pubertal development. Similarly, exposure to threat-related ELA was associated with accelerated cellular aging (d=-0.43), but not deprivation or SES. Systematic review revealed associations between ELA and accelerated cortical thinning, with threat-related ELA consistently associated with thinning in ventromedial prefrontal cortex, and deprivation and SES associated with thinning in frontoparietal, default, and visual networks. There was no consistent association of ELA with amygdala-PFC connectivity. These findings suggest specificity in the types of early environmental experiences associated with accelerated biological aging and highlight the importance of evaluating how accelerated aging contributes to health disparities and whether this process can be mitigated through early intervention.
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References 315 · Cited by 433
- Authors
- Colich, N. L., Rosen, M. L., Williams, E. S., & McLaughlin, K. A.
- Affiliations
- University of Washington (US)
- Harvard University (US)
- Stanford University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Colich, N.L.
- Venue
- Psychological Bulletin
- Publisher
- openRxiv
- Published
- 2019-05-23
- Volume
- 146
- Issue
- 9
- Pages
- 721-764
- ISSN
- 0033-2909 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7484378
- OpenAlex
- W3047379485
- Cited by
- 433
- References
- 315
- Citations by year
- 2026: 67 · 2025: 66 · 2024: 65 · 2023: 84 · 2022: 83 · 2021: 49 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 1
- FWCI
- 4.52
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- other-oa
- Locations
- Psychological Bulletin (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Smith ScholarWorks (Smith College) (submittedVersion)
- OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (1r56mh119194-01, R37-MH119194, F32-HD089514; K99-HD099203, R56-MH119194, R01-MH103291; R01-MH106482; R56-MH119194; R37-MH119194, 5r37mh119194-05)
- National Institute of Mental Health (R37-MH119194, F32MH114317, R01MH103291, R01MH106482, R56‐MH119194)
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (F32HD089514, K99HD099203)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Keywords
- biological aging, childhood adversity, deprivation, socioeconomic status, accelerated development, cortical thinning, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, default mode network, health disparities, early intervention
- MeSH terms
- Adverse Childhood Experiences, Food Insecurity, Adolescent, Aging, Brain, Child, Child Abuse, Humans, Psychosocial Deprivation, Puberty, Social Class, Violence, Biomarkers, Cellular Senescence, DNA Methylation, Aging, Premature
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