Adverse childhood experiences and the lifelong consequences of trauma
Date
2014
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
American Academy of Pediatrics
Abstract
Many people can identify a person in their lives who struggles with a chronic
illness like heart disease, diabetes, or hypertension. Most people also know
someone who struggles with mental illness, substance abuse, or relationships in
general. Traditionally, the health care system would point to high-risk behaviors
such as poor diet, drug use, or a sedentary lifestyle as the primary causal factors.
Questions for patients have focused on “What’s wrong with you?” rather than
“What happened to you?” A 1998 study from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) and Kaiser Permanente is leading to a paradigm shift in
the medical community’s approach to disease. This study of more than 17,000
middle-class Americans documented quite clearly that adverse childhood
experiences (ACEs) can contribute significantly to negative adult physical and
mental health outcomes and affect more than 60% of adults.1,2 This continues
to be reaffirmed with more recent studies.
Description
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Article
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Keywords
adverse experiences, trauma, long term effects
Citation
American Academy of Pediatrics (2014). Adverse childhood experiences and the lifelong consequences of trauma. Elk Grove Village, IL: AAP.