A new study found infants living in poverty often have mothers with depression, The Washington Post reported.

Researchers found 11 percent of babies who lived in poverty had a mom dealing with severe depression, according to the study done by the Urban Institute.

In what was described as the first detailed portrait of its kind, researchers reported that one in nine infants in poverty had a mother with severe depression and that such mothers typically breastfed their children for shorter periods than other mothers who were poor.

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The study said that even severe depression goes largely untreated among low-income mothers of infants, with just 30 percent speaking to a professional about a mental health problem during the year before the survey was conducted. – “Study links poverty to depression among mothers.” Washington Post, 8/26/10.

Another interesting story on depression in children, “Can Preschoolers be Depressed” ran in The New York Times magazine over the weekend.

In Other News: “No link between vaccines and autism, appeals court rules,” Associated Press, 8/27/10.

Key barometers of U.S. children’s well being declined before the economy hit bottom, with the percent of low-birthweight babies and percentage of kids living in poverty both rising in 2008, a new report says.

Plus, more than a quarter of U.S. children lived in homes where no parent had year-round full-time work in 2008, according to this year’s 2010 Kids Count Data Book.

The Annie E. Casey report is the latest to show the extent that children and families struggled as the nation began one of the worst economic downturns in a generation. It found the percentage of children living in poverty rose slightly to 18 percent from 17 percent. This means roughly 1 million kids lived below the federal poverty line - $21,834 a year for a family of two parents and two children. (Check out the great blog EarlyStories for other reports.)

The rate of low-birthweight infants is one of those indicators that are particularly important to early learning advocates, since there is an emphasis on starting quality child care in the womb and infancy and premature babies often struggle early on with health problems.

Overall, progress on children’s well-being stalled even before the economy became really weak, according to the report.

…Overall improvements in child well-being that began in the late 1990s stalled in the years just before the current economic downturn…        Experts project that more up-to-date Census data will show the child poverty climbing to above 20 percent. – 2010 Kids Count research summary, 7/27/10.

There is good news. Washington State ranked 11th among U.S. states, territories and the District of Columbia. (You can read Washington’s profile here.)

Washington families are also reading to their kids. Only seven percent of the children are read to less than three times a week by their families, well below the national average of 16 percent.

The report is full of good news – the teen birth rate fell – and bad news. Check it out.

The United States stacks up poorly with many developed nations on key measurements of childhood well-being, such as poverty and birth weight, and should invest more in programs that help kids age zero to six, a report found.

The Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development study found the U.S. has the fourth worst infant mortality rate among its member countries, the sixth worst rates of low birth weight and a teen birth rate three times the average among its members, in a summary of U.S. findings. In addition, U.S. child poverty rates are double the average of its members, 21.6 percent compared to 12.4 percent.

The United States should spend more on young children and disadvantaged teenagers to improve poor child health, poor basic education and high rates of child poverty, according to the OECD’s first report on child well-being. "Despite the United States' strong research and policy tradition in the area of child well-being, too many American children are still left behind", according to co-author of the OECD report, Mr Simon Chapple. – “Doing Better for Children,” 1/09.

(Thanks to CLASP for highlighting this report in an excellent summary.)

The poor U.S. scores also are found in a country where spending on children and family income are among the highest in all OECD states, the report says.

Good beginnings are crucial. But in spite of having above average overall child spending, the United States spends one third less than the OECD average on young children….  

Check out both the report and the broader CLASP story, which includes other coverage and useful links.

Babies born into poor families often face a long list of challenges – their parents may struggle to find proper food, access to quality child care and steady income - and now an Urban Institute study finds that nearly 50 percent spend half of their childhoods in poverty.

Researchers found those 49 percent of babies in their study who were born poor and spent much of their childhoods in poverty often struggled later in life.

Those poor at birth are more likely to be poor between ages 25 and 30, drop out of high school, have a teen nonmarital birth, and have patchy employment records than those not poor at birth. – “Born Poor? Half of These Babies Will Spend Most of Their Childhoods in Poverty; Significantly More Likely to Be Poor 30 Years Later.”

As the nation tries to shake off the effects of the worst recession in decades, the study could influence current debates about how to help families, such as whether or how to increase child care subsidies, funding for Head Start and the Child Care Development Block Grant program, and support for job training.

The study’s authors suggest focusing aid, such as training, education and child care subsidies, on poor families with infants. Of course, in this era of tight budgets, their idea raises another key question: Where do you cut so you can give more aid to these families?

The research summary is full of findings for the early learning community:

• “13 percent of all children are born poor”
• “10 percent of children spend at least half their childhood years (9 years or longer) in poverty.”
•  “The likelihood that an individual drops out of high school, has a teen nonmarital birth, or has a spotty work record generally increases with the number of years poor as a child.”
• “Childhood poverty rates, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, have ranged between 15 and 23 percent over the past four decades.”

The Great Recession will wipe out nearly all of the gains in children’s economic well-being made over the last 35 years, and a decline in pre-kindergarten enrollment could help drag down this generation in the coming years, a new report says.

Overall, the 2010 Child and Youth Well-Being Index laid out a bleak present and immediate future for today’s children because of the historic economic downtown. For example, the poverty rate among children will hit its highest rate in 20 years, nearly 22 percent, this year, and the obesity rate is expected to keep rising, the Foundation for Child Development stated in its annual report.

The index includes 28 well-being indicators in seven groups:  economic wellbeing,
safe/risky behavior, social relationships, emotional/spiritual well-being, community engagement, educational attainment, and health.

“… By 2010, the recession will wipe out virtually all progress made for children in the Family Economic Well-being Domain since 1975,” New Report: Impact of Recession on Children to Reach New Lows in 2010, 6/8/10.

The report also noted a drop in pre-k attendance as a major worry, since it could affect children’s performance for years, lowering math and reading scores in third and fourth grade, and potentially leading to higher high school dropout rates 

The broader spike in children living in poverty also will create problems in the future, according to Foundation for Child Development president Ruby Takanishi.

“Research shows that children who slip into poverty, even for a short time, suffer long-term setbacks even when their families regain their economic footing,” Takanishi said in a statement released yesterday. “This is especially true for children during their first decade of life. This means that, even if the recession subsides soon, the effects on these children will not. Unfortunately, we fear the worst is yet to come.”

Further Reading:

• 2010 Child and Youth Well-Being Index (CWI), Full report.
• Press release
• More than 1 in 5 kids live in poverty, USA Today, 6/8/10.
• Graphics from the report.

Children who live in poverty during the years before they enter kindergarten can struggle as adults because there is a link between living in poverty in those first years and earning less as an adult, according to a research report released over the weekend.

The study shows very tangible ways that poverty matters, and why it may matter more for children ages 0 to 5.

“The study suggests that a $3,000 annual increase in income between a child’s birth and fifth birthday is associated with 19 (percent) higher earnings and a 135-hour increase in annual work hours in adulthood.” – Research summary, Society for Research in Child Development.

The report went further, suggesting ways policymakers could use this new research, such as focusing on problems of “deep and persistent poverty early in childhood,” said lead author Greg Duncan, a professor of education at the University of California, Irvine.

“For example, income transfer policies might be designed to provide higher benefits to families with young, rather than older, children. This could be accomplished by increasing the existing child tax credit or raising benefit levels for such families or, given more severe budget constraints, reducing the allowances or benefits offered to families with older children in order to finance more generous support for families with young children,” Duncan said in the research summary.

This research was paired with another article that called for innovative new leadership in early learning that relies on emerging science and knowledge of healthy development.

There continues to be incredible breakthroughs in our knowledge of brain development. Harvard Professor Jack Shonkoff suggests a new “biodevelopmental model” and “science-based strategy” to help people succeed, in a commentary that ran in the January/February issue of Child Development.

“Positive early experiences play a role in strengthening brain architecture, while significant adversity damages brain circuits and undermines lifelong learning, behavior, and health. The later we wait to invest in children who are at the greatest risk, the more difficult the task,” Shonkoff wrote in an excerpt.

While many in the early learning world would agree with that assessment, Shonkoff takes another step, arguing that with so many leading policymakers now focused on early education issues it may be time for a new strategy.

“Together, these challenges underscore the need for a new era in early childhood policy and practice that’s guided by science and driven by bold leadership,” says Shonkoff.

I'll share the links to these stories with you when they become available in the coming week.

We are tracking the Great Recession’s impact on state early learning budgets and a new report suggests lawmakers should spend more not less in that arena because kids falling into poverty during downturns can struggle for years with work and school, while also reporting poorer health.

Plus, children who become poor in a recession are more likely to remain poor once they are adults, the Center on Law and Social Policy reports this week, referring to a First Focus study released earlier this year.

Children who fall into poverty during a recession will fare far worse along a range of variables, even well into adulthood, than will their peers who avoided poverty despite the downturn in the economy. These children will live in households with lower overall incomes, they will earn less themselves, and they will have a greater chance at living in or near poverty. – “Turning Point: The Long Term Effects of Recession-Induced Child Poverty.”

The study examined two different populations, which lived through separate post-war recessions, the first from 1972 to 1975 and the second from 1980 to 1982. Researchers found lessons for policymakers dealing with the current recession: Now is the time to invest in programs that could help an estimated 3 million kids on the edge of the poverty line.

“This makes a strong case for investing in children in times of economic downturn. Yet, revenue shortages in many states are causing investments in children and families to be cut,” CLASP added in its analysis of the report.

That is the bad news. The good news is that Pre-K Now found many states are preserving spending on early learning, though often not spending more.

This week official and more casual advocates of more money for children and family programs got help.  Zero to Three created a virtual toolbox to help you “understand the ways your state budget and tax system impact policies for infants, toddlers, and their families.”

Washington State took an important step in early education last month, enrolling the 150,000th student in its free state-funded pre-kindergarten initiative, the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program, moving it closer to the front of the early learning movement.

The 20-year-old program is more than classrooms and curriculums. It offers supporting services, such as dental visits – ECEAP funded dental care and follow ups for more than 60,000 children – and help with the English language, as part of its effort to get kids from poorer families onto the same footing as other students by the time the first kindergarten bell rings.

The enrollment is more than a number because it reflects Washington’s expanding commitment to early ed, specifically preschool and pre-k. Washington ranked 6th in state spending among the 38 states that spend their own money on preschool, and it holds the same ranking for per child spending, according to “The State of Preschool 2008” by The National Institute for Early Education Research. However, it ranked a lowly 32nd in access of four year olds to pre-k.

"Children living in poverty face more challenges in entering school ready to learn, whether it’s exposure to books and reading in their homes or an unchecked medical issue," Department of Early Learning chief Bette Hyde said in a statement.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation released its annual snapshot of the well being of U.S children and there is not a lot to cheer because not much has changed since 2000.

The percentage of kids living in poverty remained roughly the same in 2007 at 18 percent - it was 17 percent in 2000 - and the percentage of children living in homes where the parents didn’t have stable year-round employment rose slightly – hitting 33 percent in 2007 from 32 percent in 2000.

The scary news is this report didn’t even cover the ongoing Great Recession, which should only make the situation worse.

“Kids Count has slightly more good news than bad for children, but there are some trends going in the wrong direction,” Laura Beavers, coordinator of the KIDS COUNT project, said in a statement.

And when you dig a little deeper into the research you learn it’s pretty much status quo, which isn’t a good thing.

“The portrait of change in child well-being since 2000 stands in stark contrast to the period just prior to 2000. Between 1996 and 2000, 8 of the 10 key indicators used in Kids Count improved, and several improved dramatically. The improvement was experienced by every major racial group and in nearly all of the states,” researchers wrote in their Summary and Findings. “…The overriding picture that these 10 indicators present is one of little change since 2000.” 

Let’s look at the research related to early learning:

• The good news is the child death rate improved and infant mortality fell slightly. The childhood death rate dropped “from 22 out of every 100,000 children between the ages of 1 and 14 in 2000 to 19 deaths per 100,000 in 2006,” according to the report. (Washington State claimed the nation’s lowest infant mortality rate at 4.7 for every 1,000 live births. (Check out the state profile here and other state profiles here.)
• But, more kids lived in poverty and in economically unstable homes:
  • “The percentage of children living in poverty (income below $21,027 for a family of two adults and two children) increased from 17 in 2000 to 18 percent in 2007. Although the rate has stayed between 17 and 19 percent thus far this decade, a rate of 18 percent in 2007 means 900,000 more children in poverty nationally than in 2000.”
  • “The rate of children living in families where no parent has a full-time, year-round job continues to increase. The percentage of children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment increased from 32 percent in 2000 to 33 percent (or 24,281,000 children) in 2007.”

Remember, this report doesn’t cover the current recession.

Check out the 2009 Kids Count Data Book and tell us what you think.

Monday opened on a depressing note, with a new report saying the Great Recession will wipe out advances in “children’s economic well-being” made over the last 33 years and reduce the number of kids in pre-kindergarten.

The recession will push the percentage of children living in poverty to 21 percent next year, up from 17 percent in 2006, cut families’ median annual income to $55,700 and move the obesity rate among children even higher, the Foundation for Child Development reports today.

The recession “will affect their health and educational attainment,” Kenneth Land, project coordinator and director of Duke University’s Center for Population Health and Aging, said in a statement. “The fact that we may actually reverse hard-won gains made over the last 35 years is alarming.”

For early learning advocates one of the biggest concerns is the report’s suggestion that pre-k enrollment may fall, as families struggle with lower incomes, job losses and budget cuts.

“The result will be that the children who are not involved in high quality
PreK programs today will become below-basic performers on Fourth, Eighth, and Twelfth Grade tests in the future,” the foundation said in a summary.  “Now, in the maelstrom of this current recession, is the time to protect children’s educational futures.”

The Child Well-Being Index report also said the historic economic contraction will hit children of color hardest.

“When the economy is doing well, their well-being gains are more dramatic. When the economy slumps, they are harder hit than their white counterparts because more children of color live in poverty to begin with,” Ruby Takanishi, president of the research and advocacy foundation, said in a press release, referring to Latino and African American children.

You can read the Reuters story here and the full report here.