The Effect of Preschool on Adolescent Physical Health

Presented at:
AERA 2015 Annual Meeting
April 19, 2015

Terri J. Sabol, Northwestern
Lindsay Till Hoyt, University of California - Berkeley

Abstract
The current study examines the extent to which participation in preschool at 54 months is associated with healthy neuroendocrine, metabolic, and cardiovascular functioning during adolescence. We capitalize on data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, one of the most comprehensive scientific studies to date of early childcare and youth development to examine the whether preschool type, quality, and dosage may become biologically embedded by adolescence among 615 children. Using quasi-experimental methods, we find that preschool participation is related to lower levels of awakening cortisol and lower blood pressure. For low-income children, preschool participation seems particularly important for reducing systolic blood pressure and body mass index. Among children attending preschool, children who attended for more hours had lower diastolic blood pressure, but higher body mass index. Results are discussed in terms of how early out-of-home experiences may help to explain the roots of later health outcomes.