Saving Grace One Day At A Time
Child Abuse & Health
Did you know that there are studies that support the link between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) to health issues such as cancers, heart disease, and other life threatening disease; such as the Chadwick’s Childhood Maltreatment study where thirty physicians came to together to do a clinical study? The ACE score showed a graded relationship to smoking behaviors which we know is linked with lung cancer and other cancers. But in general, children who are abused are more likely to develop allergies and asthma, autoimmune disorders, osteoarthritis, cardiovascular disease and metabolic disorders, and cancer in contrast to children who live in a well adjusted one or two parent home where there is no abuse.
According to Tatiana Falcone, MD, the problem is widespread: 3 million cases of childhood trauma are reported in the United States each year, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In 2009, about 1 million of these cases were substantiated; of those cases, 1,770 resulted in death of a child secondary to maltreatment. That means child abuse has a higher rate of death from abuse specifically than childhood trauma in general.
Statistically, this means that an average of five children per day are victims of fatal maltreatment. Approximately 80 percent of the cases were reported in children under age 4. Retrospective studies in the adult population evaluating the rate of trauma exposure during childhood estimate the rate to be as high as 25 to 45 percent.
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Practically speaking, effective interventions to reduce rates of trauma in children can improve outcomes.
For this reason we are asking you to pledge your support for the prevention of child abuse including 1) the need for more extensive training for child protection agencies, police, and family court so that they are trained to recognize the subtle signs that are most often overlooked. 2) For a better understanding and methods of interaction that would best serve a child in need.
Please support the Safe Child Act Pennsylvania…