Do you want to avoid the hassle of traveling with your printed poster? IAPHS2026 is pleased to make poster printing available to you through our supplier PosterSessionOnline. Your poster will be professionally reviewed, printed and shipped directly to Portland and you will be able to pick it up from the Poster desk. Click here to learn more.
Primary Submission Category: Biomarkers or biological pathways
Housing Insecurity Across Childhood and Adolescence and DNA Methylation-Based Biological Aging: Evidence from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study
Authors: Aarti Bhat, Nick Graetz, Bharat Thyagarajan, Michael Esposito, Theresa Osypuk,
Presenting Author: Aarti Bhat*
Housing insecurity (HI) is a prevalent social determinant of health among U.S. children and adolescents and may influence biological processes related to aging through chronic stress and material hardship. This study examines whether exposure to housing insecurity across childhood is associated with epigenetic indicators of biological aging in adolescence. Data come from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a longitudinal birth cohort of children born in large U.S. cities and followed from birth through adolescence. The analytic sample included 1,120 participants with DNA methylation data at age 15. Housing insecurity was assessed at child ages 1, 3, 5, 9, and 15 using caregiver reports of four hardships: inability to pay full rent or mortgage, eviction, moving in with others due to financial problems, or staying in a shelter or other temporary location. A cumulative measure captured the number of waves in which any housing hardship occurred. Epigenetic aging outcomes included Horvath, Hannum, PhenoAge, and GrimAge epigenetic age acceleration measures, as well as DunedinPACE of aging. Linear regression models estimated associations between cumulative housing insecurity and epigenetic aging while adjusting for race/ethnicity and household income. Preliminary results indicate that cumulative housing insecurity was associated with greater Horvath epigenetic age acceleration. Each additional wave of housing insecurity corresponded to approximately 0.24 years of accelerated aging. No significant associations were observed for Hannum, PhenoAge, GrimAge, or DunedinPACE measures. These findings suggest that repeated exposure to housing insecurity during childhood may influence biological aging processes. Further analyses will examine alternative measures of cumulative housing insecurity, including trajectory-based and high-risk exposure approaches, to better understand how early-life housing adversity relates to epigenetic aging.