By Gaby Galvin
PEOPLE WHO EXPERIENCED trauma as children are more likely to suffer severe health consequences later in life, a new federal analysis shows.
Adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, refer to potentially traumatic events experienced or witnessed during childhood, like violence, substance misuse and mental health problems in the home. Though public health experts say these events are an important upstream cause of major health and social struggles later in life, it’s been unclear just how substantially they impede American health overall.
In the first analysis of its kind, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated the link between self-reported ACEs and 14 negative health conditions and socioeconomic factors, using 2015-2017 survey data for more than 144,000 adults from 25 states.
They found that 60.9% of adults reported at least one adverse childhood experience, while 15.6% reported four or more types. Such experiences were “significantly associated with poorer health outcomes, health risk behaviors, and socioeconomic challenges,” the study says, including depression, heavy drinking, smoking, lower educational attainment and unemployment.
Share This Post!
The lasting impact of neglect
By Kirsten Weir The first time Nathan Fox, PhD, stepped into a Romanian orphanage, he was struck by the silence. "The most remarkable thing about the infant room was how quiet it was, [...]
Children may act out due to grief or trauma of COVID-19 pandemic, and other lessons from HIV/AIDS
By Julie B. Kaplow and Mark W. Kline No infectious disease since HIV/AIDS in the 1980s has captured the world’s attention in the way COVID-19 has. The HIV/AIDS pandemic is still with [...]
Coronavirus is giving rise to another tragic issue. Child abuse.
By Chester Street Foundation Coronavirus is giving rise to another tragic issue. Child abuse. Hospitals in Texas have reported seeing an increase in child abuse cases, which they believe is driven [...]
Breaking the Cycle of Child Abuse
By Elizabeth Hartney, PhD Child abuse is known to repeat itself from generation to generation. Although not universal, the children of people with addictions are at higher risk of all types of abuse, [...]
Four Ways Teachers Can Show They Care
By VICKI ZAKRZEWSKI If I asked you to tell me what you remembered most about your favorite teacher growing up, I bet you wouldn’t say much about the subject matter. Instead, I’d expect [...]
CDC: Childhood Trauma Tied to Poor Health
By Gaby Galvin PEOPLE WHO EXPERIENCED trauma as children are more likely to suffer severe health consequences later in life, a new federal analysis shows. Adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, refer to potentially [...]