Researchers at Mass General Brigham have discovered that childhood experiences significantly impact the brain’s white matter, leading to reduced cognitive performance in adolescence and beyond. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that difficult early life experiences are associated with lower quality and quantity of white matter communication highways.
White matter is responsible for transmitting signals between brain networks, enabling cognition and behavior. Children who experienced adverse environments during childhood showed reduced connectivity in parts of the brain involved in mental arithmetic and receptive language. The study suggests that certain social resilience factors, such as neighborhood cohesion and positive parenting, can provide a protective effect against these negative impacts.
Lead author Sofia Carozza notes that the relationship between early life experiences and white matter development is more widespread throughout the brain than previously thought. The researchers used diffusion imaging scanning to measure fractional anisotropy, which estimates the integrity of white matter connections, and streamline count, an estimate of their strength.
The study analyzed data from 9,082 children, aged around 9.5 years old, collected as part of the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study. They examined various early environmental factors, including prenatal risk factors, interpersonal adversity, household economic deprivation, neighborhood adversity, and social resilience factors.
The analysis revealed significant differences in white matter connections depending on the child’s early-life environment. The researchers found that lower quality of white matter connections accounted for some of the relationship between adverse life experiences in early childhood and lower cognitive performance in adolescence.
While the study is based on observational data, the researchers emphasize the need for prospective studies to more definitively connect adversity with cognitive performance over time.
Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-04-childhood-brain-white-cognitive-effects.html