#  Mina Cikara, Katie A. McLaughlin, and Mark Hatzenbuehler in The Harvard Gazette 

 





May 03, 2023

 

 

     ![Photo of Cikara, McLaughlin, and Hatzenbuehler](/sites/g/files/omnuum9601/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/032723_brain_002-900x600.jpg?itok=-K5o8Qlk) 

 



 

 Time and again, science finds that poverty is hard on developing brains.

 “Higher levels of anxiety and depression are well-established among kids growing up in families with lower income,” said Harvard psychology Professor[ Katie A. McLaughlin.](/people/kate-mclaughlin) “Over the past decade or so, we’ve learned there are also well-replicated [differences in brain development](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26952506/) as a function of a family’s socioeconomic status.”

 But a robust social safety net may buffer young minds from these effects, according to a [new paper](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-37778-1) in Nature Communications by McLaughlin and her colleagues. Benefits like cash assistance and access to Medicaid seem to be especially beneficial for children in states with a high cost of living.

 Read the full article in [The Harvard Gazette](https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2023/05/poverty-hurts-young-brains-but-social-safety-net-may-help/?utm_source=SilverpopMailing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Daily%20Gazette%2020230503%20(1)).



 

 

 



 

 

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