NEWSWEEK.COM 31
HEALTHAdversity and stress without adequate buffering can turn on genes
that flood the system with enzymes that prime the body to respond
to further stress by making it easier to produce adrenaline and reac-
tivate the fight-or-flight response quickly, which can make it harder
for children with toxic stress to control their emotions.
Toxic stress can also have powerful influences on the devel-
oping immune system. Too much cortisol suppresses immunity
and increases the chance of infection, while too little cortisol
can cause an inflammatory immune response to persist long
after it is needed. That can act directly on the brain to produce
“sickness behavior,” characterized by a lack of appetite, fatigue,
social withdrawal, depressed mood, irritability and poor cog-
nitive functioning, according to a 2013 review paper aimed at
bringing pediatricians up to speed on the emerging science. As
adults, children maltreated during childhood are more likely to
have elevated inflammatory markers and a greater inflammatory
response to stress, the researchers reported. Chronic elevations
in cortisol have also been linked to hypertension, insulin resis-
tance, obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
In recent years, Fellitti and Anda’s original 1998 paper has been
cited more than 10,000 times in further studies. And as awareness
in the public health community has risen, so too has the amountCOURSE CORRECTIONAdversity can have an impact akin to
“changing the course of a rocket at the moment of takeoff.” But
scientists have found biochemical mechanisms by which emotional
buffering can help protect children from the worst consequences. Left
to right: Pupils in Germany learn how to cope with stress; an artist’s
rendering of DNA; and a scientist tests saliva samples.ơ
“ The effects can
be blunted by what
researchers call
EMOTIONAL ‘BUFFERING’—a good hug can cause
the body to release the
hormone oxytocin, or
‘LOVE’ HORMONE.”