Adverse Economic Conditions During Infancy May Lead To Substance Use And Behavioral Problems In Adolescents

According to a new study report published Online First by Archives of General Psychiatry, a JAMA Network publication, poor economic conditions during infancy can be linked with substance use and affect psychological development leading to behavioral issues in adolescents, reports Medical Xpress.

Seethalakshmi Ramanathan, M.B.B.S., D.P.M., of the State University of New York Upstate Medical University, and colleagues studied the relationship between unemployment rates during the recession period and also analyzed the rates of substance use and behavioral problems during the same time. With the help of data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, a group of 8,984 adolescents were born from January 1, 1980 to December 1984.

"The results demonstrate a strong correlation between the unemployment rate during infancy and subsequent behavioral problems," the authors wrote, according to Medical Xpress. "This finding suggests that unfavorable economic conditions during infancy may create circumstances that can affect the psychological development of the infant and lead to the development of behavioral problems in adolescence,"

According to the study, when an infant aged one year is exposed to even one percent of unemployment, the child shows the signs of engaging in the use of alcohol, smoking and marijuana by 1.06 percent, 1.07 percent and 1.08 percent, respectively. It was also associated with gang affiliation and petty and major thefts.

"Although the past does not necessarily predict the future, it provides important lessons. Our findings suggest an important static risk factor that mental health professionals may want to take into account when dealing with children exposed to the current economic crisis," the authors conclude. "We hope that the study inspires mental health professionals to look for potential causes and explore interventions that can mitigate some of these long-term consequences."

The findings are published online in Archives of General Psychiatry by JAMA and Archives Journal.

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