ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors describe the biological programming model that has guided their research and by indicating the type of evidence that is needed to test whether certain early life variables may have produced biological programming effects. They discuss some physical health studies that have been conducted with the Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Risk and Adaptation sample. The authors highlight the roles that attachment security, the quality of caregiving, and the amount of life stress play in forecasting health outcomes in adulthood. They focus on the possible programming effects of exposure to certain social experiences, such as greater family stress, less parental nurturance, and heightened family instability/conflict. Children who grow up disadvantaged, often display tendencies or engage in behaviours that may further compromise their long-term health, such as being hypervigilant to threats, having interpersonal problems and chronically low social support, having poor self-control, or living an unhealthy lifestyle.
