Profiles of Risk, Allostatic Load, and Mental Health in Low-Income Children

Most health disparities originate in childhood and extend across the life span. However, studies on health disparities have predominantly focused on adults. This study evaluated the biological and psychosocial consequences of exposure to chronic adversity among 491 low-income children aged 8 to 12 years (M-age = 9.73, SD = 1.0; 52.1% male; 68.2% Black and 21.2% Latinx; 267 maltreated and 224 nonmaltreated). Latent profile analyses revealed six distinct profiles of cumulative socioeconomic risk, allostatic load, and mental health functioning. Childhood maltreatment, emotion regulation, affect, and personality characteristics were differentially associated with these latent profiles. Findings indicate differential effects of chronic adversity on adaptation, consistent with resilience theory. These findings also offer evidence that signs of physiological dysregulation emerge at earlier ages in development and suggest there may be a window of opportunity in childhood for interventions to reduce the detrimental effects of chronic adversity on health outcomes in children.