Early-life adversity before age 5 is associated with reduced cardiometabolic health characterized by increased arterial stiffness and inflammation in adolescence.

OBJECTIVE: Cardiometabolic disease may have roots in early-life adversity (ELA). Most studies linking harsh conditions in the first year of life are either retrospective or follow individuals who continue to live in harsh conditions. The present study identified the impact of ELA, operationalized as institutional care limited to infancy and early childhood, on cardiometabolic health in adolescence. METHOD: Participants were 190 youth aged 12-21, half adopted internationally from institutional care (previously institutionalized [PI]) into highly resourced homes and a comparison group of youth born into similarly resourced homes (birth-reared; BR). A comprehensive cardiometabolic health examination in-person included a fasted blood draw to measure insulin and lipids, a dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan, and vascular biomarkers assessment. RESULTS: PI adolescents had higher aortic augmentation index (AIx; indexing arterial stiffness) and C-reactive protein levels and lower low-frequency to high-frequency (LF/HF) heart rate variability ratios compared with BR youth. PI youth had higher trunk tissue fat, though this was no longer significant after statistical correction. Post hoc analyses revealed significant interactions between groups and sex for body mass index (BMI) percentile and pulse wave velocity (PWV); PI boys had higher BMI percentiles than BR boys, and PI girls had higher PWV than BR girls. Only the PWV interaction remained significant after correction for multiple comparisons. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that ELA may play increase the risk of future cardiometabolic health, especially related to inflammation and arterial stiffness, reinforcing the need for timely interventions during this sensitive developmental stage. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).