Stress comes with ordinary life, and it can be an effective teacher in developing coping skills and instilling resilience. Then, there is the toxic variety of stress, afflicting those living in severe poverty, involving trauma stemming from abuse, neglect and household dysfunction. The experience can leave a lasting mark on children in the form of physical and mental ailments long into adulthood, even reducing life expectancy.
On Monday, the Center for Community Solutions released an assessment of recent research on toxic stress. The Cleveland-based think tank did so with good timing. Mike DeWine, the governor-elect, put at the front of his campaign a commitment to addressing the needs of at-risk children. He talked about no less than investing to see that they have a realistic and fair shot at the opportunities available to children who grow up with more advantages.
That will require, among other things, educating state lawmakers about the burden of severe poverty and the value of intervening early in an attempt to offset the harm. Which is how the Center for Community Solutions report makes a productive contribution.
[For more on this story by the editorial board, go to https://www.ohio.com/opinion/2...en-in-severe-poverty]
Comments (0)