LONDON, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- British researchers have found why childhood trauma caused by abuse increases a person's risk of developing disease later in life, the New Scientist reported in it latest issue on Saturday.

    Previous studies have suggested that childhood trauma increases a person's risk of developing heart disease, diabetes and other disorders normally associated with obesity in adulthood.

    Researchers studying inflammation in the bloodstream at King's College London monitored 1,000 people in New Zealand from birth to the age of 32, noting any factors that created stress, and recorded levels of C-reactive protein in their blood, which is a marker of inflammation and has been linked to heart disease.

    The researchers found that people who reportedly have been physically or sexually abused, or rejected by their mothers at a young age, were twice as likely to have significant levels of C-reactive protein in their blood.

    The researchers believe that stress induces abnormal levels of inflammation in children, which has repercussions in adulthood.

    "Inflammation is a natural response to physical trauma such as cutting yourself or getting an infection," Andrea Danese who led the research was quoted as saying.

    Constant stress could also reduce a child's ability to produce glucocorticoid hormones, which are the main mechanism the body uses to turn off inflammation, Danese holds, hoping his work will help people identify those at risk of developing heart disease at an earlier age.

    The research team now plans further work to measure glucocorticoid levels in people who were exposed to stress during childhood.