A new study finds that clean drinking water, sanitation, hand washing and nutritional interventions benefit the physiological stress system in early childhood.
A group of researchers led by global health researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz analyzed 5,551 pregnant women and their children in rural Bangladesh.
The women were placed into one of seven groups. Four groups were provided with nutritional supplements followed by either clean drinking water, sanitation facilities, handwashing stations, or nutrition counselling. The fifth group received a water, hygiene and handwashing intervention, the sixth group received a water, hygiene, handwashing and nutrition intervention, and the final group received no intervention.
The results showed that children whose mothers had access to drinking water, sanitation, hand washing, and nutrition had better regulated physiological stress systems during early childhood. These interventions enhanced physiological stress responses, lowered oxidative stress, and decreased DNA methylation in children.
The study, “Cluster Randomized Trial of Water, Hygiene, Handwashing, and Nutrition Interventions on Stress and Epigenetic Programming,” found that “a regulated stress response is essential for healthy growth and developmental trajectories in children.” It has been reported.
Researchers describe oxidative stress as “the accumulation of unstable free radicals that damage DNA and cellular structures.” It is associated with many childhood diseases, including asthma, protein and energy malnutrition, and diarrheal diseases, and can cause diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease.
DNA methylation, a chemical change in DNA, is typically caused by environmental conditions present during cell division and is associated with childhood abuse. Increased and abnormal DNA methylation is also associated with diseases such as cancer, lupus, muscular dystrophy, and birth defects.
Existing research provides extensive knowledge about how early childhood developmental and health trajectories are influenced by environmental factors. Researchers said the new study, known as the WASH Benefits Bangladesh Trial, was conducted in high-income countries where drinking is safe, and previous studies lacked an experimental intervention or a control group for comparison. Therefore, they claim to provide the most accurate evidence on stress physiology and epigenetic programming. Water, sanitation and hygiene.
Audrey Lin, assistant professor of microbiology and environmental toxicology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, said: When we began launching his WASH Benefits trial in 2009, its scale was unprecedented in the health and nutrition research field.
“This is exactly representative of the situation faced by the majority of the world’s population. If this type of research is done in high-income countries, it will be important to consider all of the important stressors that can affect children. I can’t figure it out exactly.”
The WASH Benefits trial was also the first to implement a physical rather than a psychosocial intervention to improve stress physiology in children living in areas with limited access to resources. It demonstrated when and how interventions such as safe drinking water, nutrition, and sanitation change children’s physiology.
Lin explained that improvements from physical interventions are similar to those from psychosocial measures.
She believes that combining both forms of intervention will yield greater health benefits.
Researchers hope the trial, which began in 2012 and is still monitoring participants, will continue to demonstrate the effectiveness of interventions introduced during the first two years of life.
Lin added: “We often hear that what happens in the womb can have a lifelong impact, especially when it comes to health and the development of certain diseases.
“The experimental design of this trial serves as a powerful platform for finding associations between our early interventions and the health outcomes of study participants.”
The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.
