Gut microbiota and the biosocial co-constitution of children's development: A scoping review

Children's developing bodies are porous to and co-constituted by their environments. In the context of intensifying environmental pollution and climate change, this porosity foregrounds the need to attend closely to biological processes in children's bodies and their development, particularly in early childhood settings. Growing evidence shows that the composition and maturation of the gut microbiota are environmentally dependent and play a crucial role in children's physical, cognitive and emotional development. However, biodiversity loss, environmental pollution and changing child-rearing practices are associated with decreasing microbial diversity in children's gut microbiota. Against this backdrop, this review asks: How does the gut microbiota co-constitute children's physical, cognitive and emotional development? To provide a preliminary answer to this question, we conducted a scoping review of 24 peer-reviewed studies published between 2010 and 2024 on the connections between the gut microbiota and cognitive and emotional development. Our results demonstrate how gut microbiota composition and development are shaped by biological and social environments, with important implications for early childhood education and care (ECEC) policy and practice. However, while evidence linking gut microbiota to cognition and emotional regulation is emerging, it remains inconsistent. With this review we seek to make two contributions: (1) synthesise research through a relational, biosocial lens, and (2) and reframe ECEC as a site of biosocial care and education in support of child development.