The ACEs Paradox: Why Stress Affects Some More Than Others
- Healing_ Passion
- Mar 17
- 2 min read
A 2021 JAMA Pediatrics study by Baldwin et al. challenges the idea that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) directly predict individual health outcomes. While high ACE scores increase group-level risk for mental and physical health problems, they fail to accurately predict individual resilience or breakdown. 🚨
So why do some people bounce back while others face chronic illness?
The answer lies in hormesis, maladaptation, metabolic trade-offs, and mitochondrial signaling (mitokines)!
⚡ Hormesis:
Small doses of stress can build resilience. Some individuals adapt by strengthening stress response systems, maintaining neuroplasticity, mitochondrial efficiency, and metabolic flexibility.
⚠️ Maladaptation & Metabolic Trade-Off:
Chronic stress forces the body to conserve energy for short-term survival, sacrificing long-term repair functions. This aligns with the Brain-Energy Conservation (BEC) model, where prolonged stress shifts metabolism away from cognitive function, immune defense, and tissue repair, leading to fatigue, neuroinflammation, and metabolic disorders.
🔥 Mitokines to the Rescue?
Mitochondria aren’t just energy factories—they send out stress signals (mitokines) that regulate inflammation, metabolism, and brain function. When stress is chronic, mitokine signaling shifts toward energy conservation, increasing risk for mental health issues, chronic fatigue, and metabolic disease.
💡 Key Takeaway:
Resilience isn’t just about exposure to stress, but how your mitochondria and metabolism adapt to it. Personalized strategies—like nutrition, exercise, hormetic stressors (cold, heat, fasting), and sleep—may help optimize mitokine signaling and break the cycle of chronic stress.
📖 Baldwin, J. R., Caspi, A., Meehan, A. J., Ambler, A., Arseneault, L., Fisher, H. L., Harrington, H., Matthews, T., Odgers, C. L., Poulton, R., Ramrakha, S., Moffitt, T. E., & Danese, A. (2021). Population vs individual prediction of poor health from results of adverse childhood experiences screening. JAMA Pediatrics, 175(4), 385-393. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2020.5602
Comments