Scientists in India are following about 9,000 people from before birth through age 30 to understand how our genes, experiences, and environment affect our mental health. This long-term study, called PARAM, is collecting detailed information about participants’ lives—including their diet, stress levels, air quality, and brain activity—along with blood samples and brain scans. By tracking the same people over many years, researchers hope to discover which factors protect us from mental health problems and which ones put us at risk. The goal is to eventually create personalized treatments and better public health strategies based on what they learn.

The Quick Take

  • What they studied: How different life experiences, genes, and environmental factors influence whether someone develops mental health problems as they grow from a baby to an adult.
  • Who participated: About 9,000 people in India, starting from before birth and continuing until age 30. Some participants were already part of an earlier study (ages 6-23) and are being followed again, while others are being added from the prenatal period.
  • Key finding: This is a long-term study still in progress, so major findings haven’t been published yet. The study is designed to track how brain development and life experiences connect to mental health over time.
  • What it means for you: This research may eventually help doctors predict who is at higher risk for mental health problems and create personalized treatments. However, results won’t be available for several years as researchers continue following participants.

The Research Details

The PARAM project is a long-term tracking study (called a cohort study) that follows the same people repeatedly over many years. Researchers are collecting information from eight different locations across India to make sure their findings apply to different communities. The study starts before babies are born and continues until participants reach age 30. Some participants are people who were already in an earlier study and are being checked on again, while others are brand new to the study. Researchers collect information through questionnaires about development, temperament, and mental health. They also measure environmental factors like stress, diet, air pollution, and screen time. The study includes detailed physical exams, brain scans using MRI machines, measurements of heart rate and balance, and biological samples like blood and saliva for genetic testing.

Following the same people over many years is the best way to understand how life experiences actually shape mental health development. By starting before birth and continuing into adulthood, researchers can see how early experiences affect brain development and later mental health. This approach is much better than just looking at people at one point in time, because it shows cause and effect rather than just connections.

This is a well-designed study published in a respected medical journal. The large sample size (9,000 people) and multiple research sites across India make the findings more likely to apply to different populations. The study includes many different types of measurements—from brain scans to genetic testing to environmental data—which gives a complete picture. However, because this is a protocol paper describing the study plan rather than final results, we don’t yet know how well the study will work in practice or what the actual findings will be.

What the Results Show

This paper describes the research plan rather than actual results, since the study is still ongoing. The researchers have designed a comprehensive system to track participants from before birth through age 30, collecting detailed information about their brains, genes, experiences, and environment. They will use advanced statistical methods to identify patterns in how people’s brains develop and how life experiences connect to mental health. The study is set up to identify both risk factors (things that increase the chance of mental health problems) and protective factors (things that help keep people mentally healthy). By combining brain imaging, genetic information, and life experience data, researchers hope to create predictive models that could eventually help identify who needs extra support.

The study will also examine how different environmental factors—like air pollution, diet, maternal stress during pregnancy, and screen time—affect brain development and mental health. Researchers will look at how urbanization (how much a person lives in a city versus rural area) influences these outcomes. They will also study how family history of mental health problems interacts with life experiences to shape each person’s mental health trajectory.

This study builds on an earlier project called cVEDA that followed about 9,000 people ages 6-23. PARAM extends that work by adding intensive follow-up from the fetal period through early childhood, filling in an important gap. This creates a more complete picture of how mental health develops from the very beginning of life. The multi-site approach across India also adds diversity to global mental health research, which has historically focused mainly on Western populations.

Because this is a study protocol (a description of the plan) rather than final results, we cannot yet evaluate how well the study will work in practice. Potential challenges include keeping participants engaged over 30 years (some people may drop out), managing the complex data collection across eight sites, and ensuring that findings from India apply to other populations. The study requires significant resources and coordination, which could affect how completely the research is carried out.

The Bottom Line

This research is still in early stages, so specific health recommendations cannot yet be made. However, the study suggests that paying attention to environmental factors during pregnancy and early childhood—like managing stress, maintaining good nutrition, and limiting air pollution exposure—may be important for mental health development. These recommendations align with existing public health guidance but should not be viewed as proven by this study yet.

Parents and expectant parents should care about this research because it may eventually help identify which children need extra mental health support early on. Healthcare providers and public health officials should follow this research because it could lead to better prevention strategies. People interested in mental health, child development, or personalized medicine should also pay attention to these findings as they emerge.

This study will take many years to complete. Researchers will publish findings gradually as they analyze different aspects of the data, but comprehensive results probably won’t be available for 5-10 years. The most important findings about early childhood development may come sooner, while findings about risk factors for mental health in adulthood will take longer.

Want to Apply This Research?

  • Users could track environmental and lifestyle factors that the study measures: daily stress levels (1-10 scale), sleep quality, screen time hours, diet quality, and perceived air quality. This personal tracking mirrors what researchers are measuring and helps users understand their own risk and protective factors.
  • Based on this research framework, users could work on modifiable protective factors: managing stress through relaxation techniques, maintaining consistent sleep schedules, eating a balanced diet, limiting screen time, and spending time in cleaner air environments when possible. The app could provide reminders and track progress on these factors.
  • Users should monitor their mental health symptoms (mood, anxiety, sleep) alongside environmental and lifestyle factors over weeks and months to see personal patterns. The app could generate reports showing correlations between specific behaviors or environmental exposures and mental health outcomes, helping users identify their personal risk and protective factors.

This article describes a research study protocol that is still in progress. No final results or clinical recommendations have been established yet. This information is for educational purposes only and should not be used to diagnose, treat, or prevent any mental health condition. If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, please consult with a qualified healthcare provider. The findings from this study, when available, should be interpreted by healthcare professionals in the context of individual circumstances.