"Early exposure to violence and stress not only can affect children's mental and social development during their formative years, it also can increase the risk of alcoholism, illicit drug use, adult depression, anxiety and even heart disease much later in life, according to a leading specialist on stress and resilience....
"Earls and his colleagues have looked at the geographical concentration of violence in Chicago neighborhoods, the factors linked to high homicide rates, and how social cohesion — or what he calls "collective efficacy" — can produce safer neighborhoods and healthier children.
"Cameron has studied how the stress of growing up in unsettled, sometimes violent circumstances affects the development of young brains and increases the risk for destructive behavior and long-term health problems in adult life. Cameron and Earls emphasized that early intervention, both at the community and the personal levels, can make an important difference in a child's life prospects...."
http://www.aaas.org/news/releases/2013/0716_youth-stress.shtml
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