The level of attentivness in mothers negatively correlated to the stress level found in child rates in addition to negatively correlating with the methylation levels of the glucocorticoid receptor.

• Rat mothers that showed low levels of licking and grooming their pups lead to pups with a methylation of the gene for the glucocorticoid receptor, which is responsible for responding to stress.

• Inattentive mothers reduces expression of this gene in pups, which in turn makes the pups secrete more glucocorticoids in response to stress.

• Oversecretion of glucocorticoids in rat pups leads to hyperresponsiveness to stress in adult life.

• Rat mothers that showed high levels of licking and grooming their pups prevent the methylation of the stress hormone receptor gene in their pups