The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) recently published a new Strategic Plan focused on the Institute’s research and training efforts to understand human development, improve reproductive health, enhance the lives of children and adolescents, and optimize abilities for all.

PRB created a list of illustrative grants and recently published journal articles showing how NICHD-funded researchers are contributing to the Institute’s research goals and objectives under several cross-cutting topics (Health Disparities, Disease Prevention, Infectious Disease, Nutrition, and Global Health), and five broad research themes:

• Understanding the Molecular, Cellular, and Structural Basis of Development.
• Promoting Gynecologic, Andrologic, and Reproductive Health.
• Setting the Foundation for Healthy Pregnancies and Lifelong Wellness.
• Improving Child and Adolescent Health and the Transition to Adulthood.
• Advancing Safe and Effective Therapeutics and Devices for Pregnant and Lactating Women, Children, and People with Disabilities.

This list is not comprehensive, but provides some recent examples of NICHD-funded grants and published research on important public health challenges.

Cross-Cutting Topics: Health Disparities

Pennsylvania State University (Grant # P2CHD041025)
The elimination of both obesity and smoking would significantly narrow disparities in total and healthy life expectancy between black and white adults. (Frisco ML, Van Hook J, Hummer RA. Would the elimination of obesity and smoking reduce U.S. racial/ethnic/nativity disparities in total and healthy life expectancy? SSM Popul Health. 2019 Feb 7; 7:100374. eCollection 2019 Apr.)

University of Michigan (Grant # T32HD007339)
Relative to white women, African American women may face a “contraception desert,” wherein they live nearer to pharmacies, but those pharmacies have characteristics that may impede the purchase of contraception. (Barber JS, Ela E, Gatny H, et. al. Contraceptive Desert? Black-White Differences in Characteristics of Nearby Pharmacies. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2019 Feb 20.)

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849)
The size of the educational gradient in health varies markedly across states because of variation in state policies affecting health driven by the health of lower educated adults, who are more vulnerable to state policy differences. (Karas Montez J, Hayward MD, Zajacova A. Educational Disparities in Adult Health: U.S. States as Institutional Actors on the Association. Socius. 2019 Jan-Dec; 5. Epub 2019 Mar 11.)

Pennsylvania State University (Grant # P2CHD041025)
Black Belt counties have poorer health outcomes than their non–Black Belt counterparts, and the difference increases as the percentage of blacks increases. The higher accessibility to an airport a county has, the better its health outcomes, but highways do not have a statistically significant association with health outcomes. (Chi G, Shapley D, Yang TC, et. al. Lost in the Black Belt South: health outcomes and transportation infrastructure. Environ Monit Assess. 2019 Jun 28; 191(Suppl 2):297.)

Cross-Cutting Topics: Disease Prevention

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Grant # R24HD050924)
Lowering maternal HIV viral load is most important in preventing perinatal mother-to-child transmission of HIV. (Ewing AC, Ellington SR, Wiener JB, et. al. Predictors of Perinatal HIV Transmission Among Women Without Prior Antiretroviral Therapy in a Resource-Limited Setting: The Breastfeeding, Antiretrovirals and Nutrition Study. Pediatr. Infect. Dis. J. 2019 May; 38(5):508-512.)

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849)
Children living in poor neighborhoods or moving into poor neighborhoods are at higher risk of asthma, compared with children not living in poor neighborhoods. Public health practitioners and policymakers need to address downward neighborhood and family economic mobility in order to improve children’s health. (Cantu P, Kim Y, Sheehan C, et. al. Downward Neighborhood Poverty Mobility during Childhood Is Associated with Child Asthma: Evidence from the Geographic Research on Wellbeing (GROW) Survey. J Urban Health. 2019 May 2.)

Cross-Cutting Topics: Nutrition

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849 and R01HD084772)
An intervention that countered the influence of junk food marketing by reframing it as incompatible with adolescent values (such as autonomy from adult control) was associated with improved dietary choices for at least three months, suggesting this values-based approach could be a low-cost, scalable way to change teens attitudes and behavior. (Bryan CJ, Yeager DS, Hinojosa CP. A values-alignment intervention protects adolescents from the effects of food marketing. Nat Hum Behav. 2019 Apr 15.)

Bowling Green State University (Grant # P2CHD050959)
Children with more complex special healthcare needs are twice as likely to experience food insufficiency compared with children with no special healthcare needs or children with less complex needs. (Balistreri KS. Food insufficiency and children with special healthcare needs. Public Health. 2019 Feb; 167:55-61.)

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Grant # T32HD007168)
The genetic risk for high body mass index (BMI) was associated with weight loss behaviors (including unhealthy behaviors such as vomiting and laxative use) in both male and female adolescents and young adults, and this association was mediated by actual measured BMI. (Nagata JM, Braudt DB, Domingue BW, et. al. Genetic risk, body mass index, and weight control behaviors: Unlocking the triad. Int J Eat Disord. 2019 Apr 17.)

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Grant # P2CHD050924)
U.S. young adults are eating healthier foods than 20 years ago, but fast food remains the source of low-quality food. Mexican Americans and low-income youth are at highest risk of having poor diets. (Patetta MA, Pedraza LS, Popkin BM. Improvements in the nutritional quality of US young adults based on food sources and socioeconomic status between 1989-1991 and 2011-2014. Nutr J. 2019 Jun 26; 18(1):32.)

Cross-Cutting Topics: Global Health

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Grant # T32HD007168)
Between 1993 and 2011, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio, and waist-to-height ratio increased rapidly among Chinese adults, especially among men. Age, physical activity, energy intake, drinking, smoking, education, income and urbanicity index were associated with elevated abdominal obesity indicators. (Qian X, Su C, Zhang B, et. al. Changes in distributions of waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio and waist-to-height ratio over an 18-year period among Chinese adults: a longitudinal study using quantile regression. BMC Public Health. 2019 Jun 6; 19(1):700.)

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Grant # P2CHD050924 and T32HD007168)
Cereal consumption and the risk of metabolic syndrome varies across regions in China and by the type of cereal. Rice consumption was associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome, while consumption of wheat and wheat products was positively associated with a risk of metabolic syndrome, but only in southern China. (Huang L, Wang H, Wang Z, Zhang J, Zhang B, Ding G. Regional Disparities in the Association between Cereal Consumption and Metabolic Syndrome: Results from the China Health and Nutrition Survey. Nutrients. 2019 Apr 1;11(4).)

University of Minnesota (Grant # R24HD041023)
Slum communities in Port-au-Prince, Haiti have a population structure dominated by adolescents and youth, a high proportion of females, and a high burden of non-communicable diseases—including hypertension and psychological distress. Screening, diagnostic, and disease management interventions are urgently needed to protect and promote improved population health outcomes in these slum communities. (McNairy ML, Tymejczyk O, Rivera V, et. al. High Burden of Non-communicable Diseases among a Young Slum Population in Haiti. J Urban Health. 2019 Jun 19.)

Theme 1: Understanding the Molecular, Cellular, and Structural Basis of Development

Ohio State University (Grant # P2CHD058484)
Youth with parental incarceration are more likely to have behavioral problems, high levels of adverse childhood experiences, and trauma symptoms. (Boch SJ, Warren BJ, Ford JL. Attention, Externalizing, and Internalizing Problems of Youth Exposed to Parental Incarceration. Issues Ment Health Nurs. 2019 Apr 8: 1-10.)

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849)
Adverse childhood experiences (neglect, hunger, parental alcohol/drug abuse or incarceration) are linked to diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and heart disease in adult women. (Cubbin C, Kim Y, Panisch LS. Familial Childhood Adversity is Associated with Chronic Disease Among Women: Data from the Geographic Research on Wellbeing (GROW) Study. Matern Child Health J. 2019 Aug; 23(8):1117-1129.)

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849)
Exposure to fine particle air pollution in infancy is associated with a decrease in children’s height in India. (Spears D, Dey S, Chowdhury S, et. al. The association of early-life exposure to ambient PM and later-childhood height-for-age in India: an observational study. Environ Health. 2019 Jul 9; 18(1):62.)

Theme 2: Promoting Gynecologic, Andrologic, and Reproductive Health

Ohio State University (Grant # P2CHD058484)
Women in rural Bangladesh are more likely to use oral contraceptive pills than injectables because they perceive pills are easier to use and without serious health problems, despite evidence. (Huda FA, Casterline JB, Ahmmed F, et. al. Contraceptive Method Attributes and Married Women’s Intention to Use the Pill or the Injectable in Rural Bangladesh. Int Perspect Sex Reprod Health. 2018 Dec 1; 44(4):157-165.)

Ohio State University and University of California, Los Angeles (Grant # P2CHD058484, R01 HD058365, and R21HD048257)
Analysis of longitudinal survey data on reproductive-age women in rural Mozambique shows that fertility desires include stopping and spacing but also postponement (avoid childbearing in the short term without clear goals for long-term fertility). (Hayford SR, Agadjanian V. Spacing, Stopping, or Postponing? Fertility Desires in a Sub-Saharan Setting. Demography. 2019 Jan 16.)

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Grant # P2CHD050924)
Climate shocks appear related to fertility: Indonesian rural women are more likely to use family planning and less likely to give birth after five or more years of abnormally hot weather. (Sellers S, Gray C. Climate Shocks Constrain Human Fertility in Indonesia. World Dev. 2019 May; 117:357-369. Epub 2019 Feb 18.)

Princeton University (Grant # P2CHD047879)
Globalization makes proactive regulation of cross-border egg and surrogacy markets necessary to address questionable business practices. Surrogacy is viewed differently from egg donation, but both may require similar regulations. (Bassan S. Different but Same: A Call for a Joint Pro-Active Regulation of Cross-Border Egg and Surrogacy Markets. Health Matrix Clevel. 2018; 28(1):323-374.)

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849, R24HD042849, and T32HD007081)
Metanalysis that examined the correlation between couples’ sexual communication and dimension of sexual function across 48 studies finds that sexual communication was positively associated with a variety of positive aspects related to sexual function. (Mallory AB, Stanton AM, Handy AB. Couples’ Sexual Communication and Dimensions of Sexual Function: A Meta-Analysis. J Sex Res. 2019 Feb 19: 1-17.)

University of Wisconsin-Madison (Grant # P2CHD047873)
Decisions made by sexual minority women about sexual identity disclosure in reproductive health care settings are influenced by previous and current interactions with health care providers. (Greene MZ, Carpenter E, Hendrick CE, et. al. Sexual Minority Women’s Experiences With Sexual Identity Disclosure in Contraceptive Care. Obstet Gynecol. 2019 May; 133(5):1012-1023.)

Theme 3: Setting the Foundation for Healthy Pregnancies and Lifelong Wellness

University of Maryland (Grant # R01HD053654 and R24HD041041)
For women who do not modify their smoking behavior preconception, preterm birth risk of smoking remains low until late in the first trimester. Specifically, women who smoked during the first and second trimester had higher odds of preterm birth compared to those who smoked less than a pack a day only in the first trimester, but the odds did not increase for women who smoked during all three trimesters relative to those who smoked during only the first and second trimesters. (Kondracki AJ, Hofferth SL. A gestational vulnerability window for smoking exposure and the increased risk of preterm birth: how timing and intensity of maternal smoking matter. Reprod Health. 2019 Apr 16; 16(1):43.) 

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849)
Boys born to obese mothers had decreased psychomotor development (i.e., the development of a child’s cognitive, motor, and social capacities.) as compared to boys born to normal weight mothers. (Nichols AR, Rundle AG, Factor-Litvak P, et. al. Prepregnancy obesity is associated with lower psychomotor development scores in boys at age 3 in a low-income, minority birth cohort. J Dev Orig Health Dis. 2019 Sep 5: 1-9.)

University of Wisconsin-Madison (Grant # P2CHD047873)
Study links adverse birth outcomes to mothers’ recent toxic stressors (e.g., homelessness, intimate partner violence, incarceration of self/spouse, divorce) and illness or death of someone close, events that are higher for minority and low-income mothers. (Koning SM, Ehrenthal DB. Stressor landscapes, birth weight, and prematurity at the intersection of race and income: Elucidating birth contexts through patterned life events. SSM Popul Health. 2019 Jul 23; 8:100460. eCollection 2019 Aug.)

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Grant # R24HD050924)
Lowering maternal HIV viral load is the most important factor in preventing perinatal mother-to-child-transmission. Efforts to reduce food shortage, prevent sexual transmitted infections and tuberculosis, and improve antiretroviral therapy coverage during pregnancy are also important. (Ewing AC, Ellington SR, Wiener JB, et. al. Predictors of Perinatal HIV Transmission Among Women Without Prior Antiretroviral Therapy in a Resource-Limited Setting: The Breastfeeding, Antiretrovirals and Nutrition Study. Pediatr. Infect. Dis. J.. 2019 May; 38(5):508-512.)

Theme 4: Improving Child and Adolescent Health and the Transition to Adulthood

Pennsylvania State University (Grant # P2CHD041025)
Peer influence and friend selection explain risky behaviors (smoking, drinking, delinquency) in adolescents, but the delinquent behavior of girls is more susceptible to influence, and girls are especially likely to select friends who have similar smoking behaviors to their own. (McMillan C, Felmlee D, Osgood DW. Peer Influence, Friend Selection, and Gender: How Network Processes Shape Adolescent Smoking, Drinking, And Delinquency. Soc Networks. 2018 Oct; 55:86-96. Epub 2018 May 26.)

State University of New York at Albany (Grant # R24HD044943)
Children who experienced moderate or high levels of adversity at some point in childhood exhibit consistently greater depression risk and depression severity, regardless of the timing of adversity. (Tracy M, Salo M, Slopen N, et. al. Trajectories of childhood adversity and the risk of depression in young adulthood: Results from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Depress Anxiety. 2019 Mar 18.)

University of California, Los Angeles (Grant # P2CHD041022)
More years of childhood Medicaid eligibility are linked to fewer hospitalizations in adulthood, especially among those with chronic illnesses and living in low-income areas. (Wherry LR, Miller S, Kaestner R, et. al. Childhood Medicaid Coverage and Later-Life Health Care Utilization. Rev Econ Stat. 2018 May; 100(2):287-302. Epub 2018 May 4.)

University of Texas at Austin (Grant # P2CHD042849)
Discrimination based on race/ethnicity, sexual minority status, and gender is related to the type of health risk behaviors youths engage in—drinking, drug use, and risky sex. (Martin-Storey A, Benner A. Externalizing Behaviors Exacerbate the Link between Discrimination and Adolescent Health Risk Behaviors. J Youth Adolesc. 2019 Jun 7.)

University of California, Los Angeles (Grant # P2CHD041022)
Persistent sleep disturbances and chronically “low positive affect” (blunt mood, pessimism) raise the risk for depression during early adulthood. (Kuhlman KR, Chiang JJ, Bower JE, et. al. Persistent Low Positive Affect and Sleep Disturbance across Adolescence Moderate Link between Stress and Depressive Symptoms in Early Adulthood. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2019 Aug 24.)

Theme 5: Advancing Safe and Effective Therapeutics and Devices for Pregnant and Lactating Women, Children, and People with Disabilities

Not applicable