Gender Discrimination In Childhood May Lead To Thinning Of Female Brain: Study

Women from countries with high levels of sexism are more likely to have thinner regions of the brain, according to a recent study.

The study provides evidence that gender-based discrimination not only has psychological effects, but also physical ones. Gender-based discrimination during formative years can lead to thinning of certain brain regions in women, research suggests.

The results of this groundbreaking study were published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

The fact that sexism affects brain function is well documented. Some research has suggested that gender bias can affect girls’ academic performance, but this first-of-its-kind study assessed whether it can also lead to physical impairment.

It is worth noting that earlier study An overview of how different forms of stigma (discrimination) affect children’s brain development. The study found that black and Latino children living in states with high levels of structural stigma had smaller hippocampal volumes compared with children living in states with low levels of structural stigma. However, this effect was not observed in the non-stigmatized group.

To find out, the researchers analyzed data from 7,876 patients who had undergone MRI scans from 29 countries. Factors such as their social status and academic performance were also taken into account.

It turns out that the higher the discrimination index, the thinner the brain area.

This phenomenon was found to be concentrated in the right hemisphere—the right medial orbitofrontal cortex, the left occipital cortex, and the right caudal anterior cingulate gyrus.These are the first parts to be affected by any adverse childhood experience, according to Medical courier.

“The results show that gender inequality at the country level is associated with mean structural differences in brain cortical thickness between men and women. The effects seen are global, with significant cortical thickness in the right hemisphere,” the researchers said in the study.

A self-fulfilling prophecy may be underway in countries whose leaders believe women lag behind men intellectually, leading to discriminatory social behavior against women, according to researchers.

To break this cycle, researchers recommend that leaders actively reject these stereotypes.

Published by Medicaldaily.com