A new study, published by University of Southern California, has stated that poverty can affect the growth of children’s brain.

Researchers found that the children who grow in affluent environment have bigger brains as compared to the ones who live in poverty.

Researchers along with neuroscientists worked together to record the brain images of 1,099 kids and teens of the age group 3 to 20 years.

They studied the magnetic resonance imaging scans for three years, and measured the surface area of cerebral cortices.

Cerebral cortices are the outermost layers of brain that control sophisticated cognitive functions, including language, reading skills, spatial and decision-making skills.

Researchers found that the brains of children who earned less than $25,000 annually had 6% less surface area as compared to the ones that earned $150,000 or more. They also found that the children, who belonged to the poorest households, scored lower on the battery of cognitive tests.

They wrote, “By age 10, more intelligent children have thinner cortices; this relationship becomes more pronounced through adolescence. In contrast, surface area is greater in more intelligent children at age 10”.

As per the professors Linda Chang and Thomas Ernst from the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine, in the children from low income families, small differences (increments) in income could result into larger brain surfaces.

Chang said they are grateful to the children and their families for participating in this study. He added that with the help of this data many researchers across the United States and the world will be able to address a lot of brain development questions.

The study stated that larger brain surfaces are the indication of better development in brains, and can be influenced by nutrition, interaction and engaging children in language, reading and play. There are many other factors that can be responsible for variance in brain morphometry.