Grantee Research Project Results
2023 Progress Report: Connecting Early Life Chemical Stressors and Caregiving Environment to Neurodevelopmental Outcomes for Children Attending Licensed Child Care Centers
EPA Grant Number: R840221Title: Connecting Early Life Chemical Stressors and Caregiving Environment to Neurodevelopmental Outcomes for Children Attending Licensed Child Care Centers
Investigators: Redmon, Jennifer Hoponick , Levine, Keith , Willoughby, Michael , Kondash, AJ , Pilkington, William , Kumar, Deepak , Colley, Sarah
Current Investigators: Redmon, Jennifer Hoponick , Levine, Keith , Willoughby, Michael , Kondash, AJ , Aceituno, Anna , Pilkington, William , Kumar, Deepak
Institution: Research Triangle Institute
EPA Project Officer: Hahn, Intaek
Project Period: August 1, 2021 through May 13, 2025
Project Period Covered by this Report: August 1, 2022 through July 31,2023
Project Amount: $1,899,906
RFA: Center for Early Lifestage Vulnerabilities to Environmental Stressors (2020) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Children's Health , Endocrine Disruptors
Objective:
The overarching objective of this Center is to make causal linkages between cumulative environmental exposures, caregiving environments in early childhood, and changes in neurodevelopment for preschoolers.
Project 1: The objective of Project 1 is to identify the occurrence, concentration, and variation of chemicals found in toddler’s caregiving environments at home and in child care, and evaluate how the cumulative chemical exposures are causally associated with neurodevelopmental functioning in early childhood.
Project 2: The objective of Project 2 is to test whether nonchemical factors, specifically home caregiving environment, alter the impacts of early life chemical exposures (i.e., metals, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, and cotinine as a biomarker of tobacco exposure) on neurodevelopmental outcomes in early childhood.
Progress Summary:
In this reporting period, our research team initiated activities related to data collection activities needed for both research projects and to meet all study objectives.
Data Collection Activities
During this reporting period, our project team developed materials and processes to collect and manage data related to neurodevelopmental outcomes, psychosocial and caregiving information, and environmental exposures at the level of the child’s home and child care center. Our team developed and tested two REDCap projects to securely collect and maintain study data at the level of individual families and child care centers across multiple study time points. Two staff members were trained to conduct caregiver interviews, child neurodevelopmental assessment activities, and environmental sampling at child care centers. Parent/guardian questionnaires are completed independently via REDCap. Parents will receive individualized, secure links that only they can access. Data are backed up daily, and ongoing maintenance and technical support are provided in-house as needed. All materials needed to construct home sampling kits sent to participating families (for water, dust, hair, saliva, and wristband collection) and center sampling kits used by study staff during visits to child care centers (for water and dust collection) were identified and purchased.
Supplemental Keywords:
Lead, metals, PFAS, PDBE, environmental exposure, self-regulation, attention, executive function, ADHD, toddlerhood, early childhood, parent–child interaction, parenting stress, economic stress, moderation, conditional effects, silicone wristbands, inverse probability of treatment weightingRelevant Websites:
Preschool Environmental Experiences and Development Study (PEDS) Exit
Progress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.