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Press Releases
| Research indicates that the loss of a parent early in life may cause biochemical changes that increase the risk of adult depression and anxiety |
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07/23/08
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Research conducted at Butler Hospital and published in the July issue of Biological Psychiatry, indicates that the loss of a parent during childhood due to death or desertion can cause biochemical changes in the body that could increase the risk for developing psychiatric disorders in adulthood.
The researchers, led by Audrey R. Tyrka, MD, PhD, associate director of the Mood Disorders Program at Butler Hospital, found that adults who, as children, experienced long-term separation from a parent, have changes in cortisol levels, a hormone that regulates the body’s reaction to stress. Biochemical differences were found in people who lost a parent due to death or because of desertion. Overall, people who had parental loss in childhood had exaggerated cortisol responses to a chemical stress test. However, those who were deserted by one parent and then neglected by the surviving parent or caregiver were not able to mount normal cortisol responses to the test.
“The significance of this work is that it indicates that traumatic experiences can change our biology in addition to shaping our psychological responses,” explains Dr. Tyrka. “We’ve known for a long time that adverse experiences put people at risk for psychiatric disorders, and this body of work indicates that there may be a biological mechanism for this.”
Other results of the study found that one’s age at the time of parental loss was not a significant factor in shaping the cortisol response. Also, a large number of people whose parents had deserted them had what the researchers termed compound stress — foster care, socioeconomic adversity, and some type of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse or neglect.
A combination of blood tests and psychological exams were used to determine the extent these life events had on participants in the study who had experienced the loss of a parent due to death or desertion. Another group of people were studied who had not had a loss of a parent.
This study is one of the first to identify characteristics of stress or trauma that substantially influence the biological outcome, and Dr. Tyrka and her colleagues are conducting further studies to identify other such influences. Studies underway in their laboratory are focused on effects of certain genes, as well as other stressful and protective environmental factors. |
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