A growing body of evidence shows that toxic stress changes a child on a biological level. When intense or prolonged adversity occurs during developmental years, and isn’t buffered by nurturing relationships and safe environments, the body’s stress response can get stuck in an “on” state.
Toxic stress early in life can weaken or disrupt the developing brain, with short- and long-term consequences for learning, health, and behavior throughout life. It can affect multiple biological systems, from the neurologic, metabolic, immune, and endocrine systems, just to name a few.
