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Poverty pops up if people “lack the means to satisfy their basic needs.

“A person living in poverty will often occupy below-standard living conditions.

As a result, some children living in poverty face developmental challenges that may affect their well-being long term.

person looking sad out the window

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This article discusses how poverty affects children’s brain development and mental health.

For instance, those who live in poverty have shorter life expectancies and experience higher death rates.

However, these factors do not automatically mean that children living in poverty will experience challenges to brain health.

There are many risk factors that come into play.

Potential Risk Factors

Research on neural development has recognized several factors that may affect cognitive abilities.

Infant mortality rates are higher when infants don’t receive adequate nutrition, safe housing, and health care.

This manifests in the following ways, listed below.

This chronic stress was observed in these same children at the ages of nine, 13, and 17.

There are a number of anti-poverty programs in existence that may help reduce financial burden.

These programs include:

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