Cardiovascular and neuroendocrine activity in preschool children: comparison between day-care and home levels
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U Lundberg1, O Westermark, B Rasch
1Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Sweden.
Insights
Day-care settings impact children's physiological stress responses, showing increased heart rate and stress hormone excretion but decreased cortisol levels compared to home. These effects varied with age, highlighting the need to understand environmental influences on child development.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Developmental Psychology
- Environmental Health
Background:
- Child day-care environments are common, yet their impact on children's physiological stress responses requires further investigation.
- Understanding the neuroendocrine and cardiovascular adjustments in young children exposed to day-care settings is crucial for assessing well-being.
- Previous research has not fully elucidated the differential effects of day-care versus home environments on key stress indicators in early childhood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare physiological and neuroendocrine responses of young children in day-care versus home settings.
- To examine age-related differences in stress responses at 3.5 and 5.5 years.
- To investigate potential sex differences in these responses.
Main Methods:
- Studied 60 children (30 boys, 30 girls) across nine day-care centers.
- Measured systolic/diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and urinary catecholamines (epinephrine, norepinephrine) and cortisol.
- Collected data during a typical day at the day-care center and at home.
Main Results:
- Day-care was associated with elevated heart rate, epinephrine, and norepinephrine compared to home.
- Cortisol levels were lower in the day-care setting than at home.
- Systolic blood pressure showed age-dependent changes: decreasing at 3.5 years and increasing at 5.5 years in day-care.
- No significant sex differences were observed.
Conclusions:
- Day-care environments elicit distinct physiological and neuroendocrine stress responses compared to home settings.
- A dissociation exists between the sympathetic-adrenal medullary (catecholamines) and pituitary-adrenal cortical (cortisol) systems in response to day-care.
- Age-related adjustments in blood pressure regulation occur within the day-care context, suggesting developmental influences.
Abstract:
Thirty boys and 30 girls at nine day-care centers were examined at the mean age of 3.5 and 5.5 with regard to systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate and neuroendocrine activity (urinary catecholamines and cortisol) during a day at their day-care center and in their home, respectively. Compared to home levels, day-care was associated with increased heart rate, epinephrine and norepinephrine excretion and decreased cortisol levels. Systolic blood pressure decreased at the day-care centers at the age of 3.5 and increased at the age of 5.5. No significant sex differences were found. The possible role of mental and physical arousal and the dissociation between the sympathetic-adrenal medullary and the pituitary-adrenal cortical responses are discussed.