The role of prenatal substance exposure and early adversity on parasympathetic functioning from 3 to 6 years of age

Elisabeth Conradt, Beau Abar, Stephen Sheinkopf, Barry Lester, Linda Lagasse, Ronald Seifer, Seetha Shankaran, Henrietta Bada-Ellzey, Charles Bauer, Toni Whitaker, Matt Hinckley, Jane Hammond, Rosemary Higgins

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Scopus citations

Abstract

We employed latent growth curve analysis to examine trajectories of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) from 3 to 6 years among children with varying levels of prenatal substance exposure and early adversity. Data were drawn from a prospective longitudinal study of prenatal substance exposure that included 1,121 participants. Baseline RSA and RSA reactivity to an attention-demanding task were assessed at 3, 4, 5, and 6 years. Overall, there were significant individual differences in the trajectories of RSA reactivity, but not baseline RSA, across development. Greater levels of prenatal substance exposure, and less exposure to early adversity, were associated with increased RSA reactivity at 3 years, but by 6 years, both were associated with greater RSA reactivity. Prenatal substance exposure had an indirect influence through early adversity on growth in RSA reactivity. Results are in support of and contribute to the framework of allostatic load.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)821-835
Number of pages15
JournalDevelopmental Psychobiology
Volume56
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - May 1 2014

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Keywords

  • allostatic load
  • early adversity
  • prenatal substance exposure
  • respiratory sinus arrhythmia

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Developmental and Educational Psychology
  • Developmental Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Behavioral Neuroscience

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