Poverty and crime ‘linked to differences in newborn brains’, study says

Stress of social diasadvantages on mothers could have long-term effect on child’s development, Sam Hancock reports

MRI scans, not the one used above, showed babies with mothers facing social disadvantages tended to be born with smaller brains (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Environmental factors such as poverty and crime can influence the structure and function of babies’ brains before they have even been born, according to a new study.

The report – published in the journal JAMA Network Open – saw US researchers conduct MRI scans on sleeping, healthy newborns all from different backgrounds.

Images showed that babies with mothers facing social disadvantages, such as poverty, tended to be born with smaller brains than babies whose mothers had higher household incomes.