HEALthy Brain and Child
Development (HBCD) Study
The HBCD Study, sponsored by the National Institutes of
Health, is the largest long-term study of early brain and
child development in the United States.
ABOUT THE STUDY
Exploring factors that impact children’s
development
The HBCD Study will enroll over 7,000 participating families across the United States and follow them from pregnancy through early childhood. Our long-term goal is to better understand how child development is affected by exposure to social and environmental experiences and conditions.
Recent advances in technology and developments in research allow us to explore in more detail how early exposures interact with brain development and other social and health outcomes. Knowledge gained from this research will have lasting impacts on future generations of children.
FOR FAMILIES
Join a study that will help create healthy
futures for all children
Connect with the nation’s leading child development and neuroscience researchers to participate in the HBCD Study and help uncover the experiences of early childhood that can affect an individual’s future.
Many factors affect how children develop, yet little is known about how these factors impact health and other outcomes. Together, we can find answers to many questions that parents, caregivers, and health professionals can use to enhance the well-being of children.
FOR SCIENTISTS
Information for researchers
Our major study aims include facilitating data sharing under an open science model and serving as a resource for the worldwide scientific community to enable broad use of the HBCD data. Beginning in 2025, annual data releases will be publicly available to researchers for analysis and to generate new ideas for research.
RECRUITMENT SITES
Get involved at one of our 27
recruitment sites
The HBCD Study has 27 recruitment sites at universities and research hospitals across the United States and involves the participation of leading experts in the fields of neuroscience, developmental science, and public health.
Families have the opportunity to join the study at one of their local recruitment sites starting in 2023.
HBCD STUDY IN THE NEWS
Review the latest news and press releases about the study
Health Matters: Daily life of parents and impacts on children
WVUA 23 Digital Reporter
Jun, 27, 2025
Read MoreQ&A: Communication Prof. Elizabeth Norton talks children’s language, reading development research
The Daily Northwestern
Apr, 17, 2025
Read MoreLeading neuroscientist and AI geneticist Anders Dale, Ph.D. named president of J. Craig Venter Institute and joins Board
J. Craig Venter Institute
Apr, 2, 2025
Read MoreEarly Relational Health: A Foundation for Healthy Development Across the Lifespan
National Institutes of Health
Mar, 19, 2025
Read More
BECOME A PARTICIPANT
As parents, caregivers, health care providers, and researchers, we share a common goal: helping our children grow to be healthy and happy.
We invite you to participate in a study that will expand our knowledge of development from the prenatal period through early childhood with the goal of understanding how to better support healthy futures for all children for generations to come.
