Podcasts, Press Releases, and Videos
The study investigates the relationship between parenting practices and epigenetic age acceleration in young children with developmental delays and behavioral challenges. Through a sample of 62 participants from a randomized controlled trial, researchers compared the effects of Internet-delivered parent-child therapy and community referrals. Utilizing saliva samples and cumulative risk indicators, they found that children experiencing higher levels of adversity displayed lower epigenetic age acceleration when their parents demonstrated more positive and less negative parenting behaviors. These findings suggest a potential protective role of positive parenting in mitigating the impact of adversity on epigenetic aging in children with developmental delays.
In the podcast episode "Under the Cortex," Alexandra Sullivan, a psychological scientist from the University of California, San Francisco, discusses parenting strategies within the context of neurodiversity with APS's Özge G. Fischer-Baum. Sullivan's research focuses on the relationship between parenting and developmental delays, exploring inclusive approaches. Additionally, she recently published an article on this subject in APS's journal Psychological Science. For further information on this research, one can visit psychologicalscience.org.
This KQED story reports on our research showing that early childhood trauma therapy can alter a biomarker, accelerated aging. This biomarker is linked to serious diseases later in life. The study underscores how targeted interventions for young children experiencing trauma can mitigate long-term health consequences, such as heart disease and diabetes.
This San Francisco Chronicle article discusses our UCSF study on the effectiveness of early childhood trauma therapy offsetting biological risk. The research highlights that early intervention may help prevent long-term physical health problems, such as heart disease, later in life, by reducing pediatric epigenetic age acceleration. The study focuses on how addressing childhood trauma can have lasting positive effects, aligning with ongoing efforts to enhance mental and physical well-being in children.