eprintid: 10196587 rev_number: 6 eprint_status: archive userid: 699 dir: disk0/10/19/65/87 datestamp: 2024-09-04 12:39:38 lastmod: 2024-09-04 12:39:38 status_changed: 2024-09-04 12:39:38 type: article metadata_visibility: show sword_depositor: 699 creators_name: Black, Candace J creators_name: McEwen, Fiona S creators_name: Smeeth, Demelza creators_name: Popham, Cassandra M creators_name: Karam, Elie creators_name: Pluess, Michael title: Effects of War Exposure on Pubertal Development in Refugee Children ispublished: pub divisions: UCL divisions: B02 divisions: D14 divisions: GA3 divisions: G17 keywords: puberty, conflict, refugees, stress, nutrition note: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher's terms and conditions. abstract: Increasing research shows pubertal development accelerates following threats while it decelerates following deprivation. Yet, these environmental stressors are unlikely to occur in isolation. We investigated how war exposure and energetic stress impact pubertal development using data from the longitudinal Biological Pathways of Risk and Resilience in Syrian Refugee Children study. Our sample included 1,600 male and female Syrian refugee children and their caregivers who lived in temporary settlements in Lebanon. We hypothesized that (a) energetic stress suppresses pubertal development; (b) war exposure accelerates pubertal timing in boys and increases risk of menarche in girls, but only when energetic stress is low; and (c) when energetic stress is elevated, effects of war exposure on pubertal development will be attenuated. Among boys, we did not find support for Hypothesis 1, but Hypotheses 2 and 3 were supported. Exposure to morbidity/mortality threats accelerated pubertal timing; this effect was attenuated under conditions of elevated energetic stress. Among girls, we found support for Hypothesis 1, but not for Hypotheses 2 and 3. Elevated energetic stress decreased the risk of menarche in girls. Neither war exposure, nor any interactions with energetic stress, predicted risk of menarche. Sensitivity analyses revealed a significant interaction between bombing exposure and the amount of time since leaving Syria. Bombing decreased the risk of menarche, but only for girls who had left Syria four or more years prior to data collection. We discuss implications for translational efforts advocating for puberty screening in medical and mental health settings to identify trauma-exposed youth. date: 2023-09 date_type: published publisher: AMER PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOC official_url: http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/dev0001569 oa_status: green full_text_type: other language: eng primo: open primo_central: open_green verified: verified_manual elements_id: 2309403 doi: 10.1037/dev0001569 medium: Print-Electronic pii: 2023-87302-001 lyricists_name: Smeeth, Demelza lyricists_id: DMSME76 actors_name: Smeeth, Demelza actors_id: DMSME76 actors_role: owner funding_acknowledgements: R01HD083387 [Eunice Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development]; 896988 [European Union]; 896988 [Marie Curie Actions (MSCA)] full_text_status: public publication: Developmental Psychology volume: 59 number: 9 pagerange: 1559-1572 pages: 14 event_location: United States citation: Black, Candace J; McEwen, Fiona S; Smeeth, Demelza; Popham, Cassandra M; Karam, Elie; Pluess, Michael; (2023) Effects of War Exposure on Pubertal Development in Refugee Children. Developmental Psychology , 59 (9) pp. 1559-1572. 10.1037/dev0001569 <https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0001569>. Green open access document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10196587/1/Effects%20of%20war%20exposure%20on%20pubertal%20development%20in%20refugee%20children.pdf