In the world, 1 billion children live in poverty. Regarding developing countries, Brazil has the highest rate of social inequality. Environmental factors may impact child development and, consequently, functionality.

to analyze the association between environmental factors and affordances in the home environment of healthy infants exposed to low socioeconomic status (SES).

At 3 months old, 128 full-term healthy infants were divided into two groups: the exposed group (EG), infants classified as low SES, and the comparison group (CG), infants without low SES exposition; both according to the income-to-poverty ratio (PIR). The affordances in the home environment were measured by The Home Environment for Motor Development – Infant Scale (AHEMD-IS); physical space, variety of stimulation, gross-motor toys, fine-motor toys, and total score. It classified the affordances: as less than adequate (LTA), moderately adequate (MA), adequate (A), and excellent (E). In the SPSS 2.0, comparison tests and stepwise multiple linear regression were performed (p < 0.05).

Infants of the EG had significantly the lowest mean in length at birth (p=0.03; Cohen's r= 0.157); PIR (p<0.01; Cohen's r= 0.351); maternal age (p<0.01; Cohen's r= 0.50); marital status of guardians (p<0.01; Cohen's r= 0.31); the number of children living in the household (p<0.0001; Cohen's r= 0.29); and maternal education (p<0.01; Cohen's r= 0.73). The home environment of the EG presented less affordances for child development in the dimensions of gross motor toys (p<0.0001; Cohen's r= 0.353; EG, md= 2.00 [1.00 – 3.00] vs GC, md 3.00 [2.00 – 4.50]); fine motor skills (p=0.0001 Cohen's r= 0.327; EG, md= 1.00 [0.00 – 2.00] vs GC, md 2.00 [1.00 – 4.00]); and the total score (p<0.0001; Cohen's r= 0.377; EG, md=15.00 [13.00 – 18.00] vs GC, md = 19.00 [16.00 – 22.00]). Maternal age was a protective factor for obtaining the LTA score (p = 0.043, OR: 0.829 [0.692 - 0.994]). Therefore, each additional year in maternal age decreases 17.01-fold the chance the affordances in the home environment score LTA.

The home environment of infants exposed to poverty presented less adequate affordances for neuropsychomotor development, mainly in the dimensions of gross motor toys, fine motor toys, and, consequently, total score. In contrast, the higher the maternal age, the better the results regarding the quantity and quality of affordances present in the home environment.

Knowledge about offering adequate affordances for neuropsychomotor development is essential for providing healthy child development. Basic kits of age-appropriate toys offered during the follow-up may be useful as palliative and low-cost tools.