Open AccessEarly life stress is associated with earlier emergence of permanent molars
Author(s) -
Cassidy L. McDermott,
Katherine Hilton,
Anne T. Park,
Ursula A. Tooley,
Austin L. Boroshok,
Mel Mupparapu,
Joanna Scott,
Erin E. Bumann,
Allyson P. Mackey
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.2105304118
Subject(s) - molar , population , adverse childhood experiences , early childhood , demography , developmental psychology , medicine , psychology , dentistry , environmental health , psychiatry , mental health , sociology
Exposure to adversity can accelerate biological aging. However, existing biomarkers of early aging are either costly and difficult to collect, like epigenetic signatures, or cannot be detected until late childhood, like pubertal onset. We evaluated the hypothesis that early adversity is associated with earlier molar eruption, an easily assessed measure that has been used to track the length of childhood across primates. In a preregistered analysis (n = 117, ages 4 to 7 y), we demonstrate that lower family income and exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are significantly associated with earlier eruption of the first permanent molars, as rated in T2-weighted magnetic resonance images (MRI). We replicate relationships between income and molar eruption in a population-representative dataset (National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey;n = 1,973). These findings suggest that the impact of stress on the pace of biological development is evident in early childhood, and detectable in the timing of molar eruption.