Consistency in adult reporting of adverse childhood experiences.

PubMed

Colman, I; Kingsbury, M; Garad, Y; Zeng, Y; Naicker, K; Patten, S; Jones, P B; Wild, T C; Thompson, A H

2016-02-01

Many studies have used retrospective reports to assess the long-term consequences of early life stress. However, current individual characteristics and experiences may bias the recall of these reports. In particular, depressed mood may increase the likelihood of recall of negative experiences. The aim of the study was to assess whether specific factors are associated with consistency in the reporting of childhood adverse experiences. The sample comprised 7466 adults from Canada's National Population Health Survey who had reported on seven childhood adverse experiences in 1994/1995 and 2006/2007. Logistic regression was used to explore differences between those who consistently reported adverse experiences and those whose reports were inconsistent. Among those retrospectively reporting on childhood traumatic experiences in 1994/1995 and 2006/2007, 39% were inconsistent in their reports of these experiences. The development of depression, increasing levels of psychological distress, as well as increasing work and chronic stress were associated with an increasing likelihood of reporting a childhood adverse experience in 2006/2007 that had not been previously reported. Increases in mastery were associated with reduced likelihood of new reporting of a childhood adverse experience in 2006/2007. The development of depression and increases in chronic stress and psychological distress were also associated with reduced likelihood of 'forgetting' a previously reported event. Concurrent mental health factors may influence the reporting of traumatic childhood experiences. Studies that use retrospective reporting to estimate associations between childhood adversity and adult outcomes associated with mental health may be biased.

Childhood Exposure to Adversity and Risk of Substance-Use Disorder in Two American Indian Populations: The Meditational Role of Early Substance-Use Initiation*

PubMed Central

Whitesell, Nancy Rumbaugh; Beals, Janette; Mitchell, Christina M.; Manson, Spero M.; Turner, R. Jay

2009-01-01

Objective: We examined the relationship of childhood exposure to adversity and risk of substance-use disorder in two culturally distinct American Indian reservation communities, exploring both the role of early initiation of substance use in mediating this relationship and variation in risk across types of adversity exposure. Method: The American Indian Service Utilization, Psychiatric Epidemiology, Risk and Protective Factors Project provided data from 2,927 American Indians on the occurrence and age at onset of adversities, substance use, and substance-use-disorder symptoms. Results: The risk of substance-use disorder associated with early adversity was explained partially by early initiation of substance use. Three types of adversity (major childhood events, traumas, and witnessed violence) were associated with early onset of substance use and increased risk of substance-use disorder. Gender and tribe were also related to variation in both early substance use and substance-use disorder. Conclusions: Early exposure to adverse events was associated with early substance use and the subsequent development of substance-use disorders among American Indians. Public health initiatives targeting substance use and substance-use disorders in American Indian communities should include efforts to help children in these communities cope with adversities they encounter. PMID:19895776

Adverse Childhood Experiences and the Mental Health of Veterans.

PubMed

McGuinness, Teena M; Waldrop, Jessica R

2015-06-01

Many U.S. Veterans have experienced the burdens of mental illness and suicide. The current article focuses on Veterans who served from 2001-2015. Although combat exposure and suicidal ideation are linked, approximately one half of all suicides among Active Duty service members (who have served since 2001) occurred among those who never deployed. Researchers who sought additional risks for suicide found that Veterans have greater odds of adversities in childhood than the general population. Adverse childhood experiences are stressful and traumatic experiences, including abuse and neglect, as well as witnessing household dysfunction, or growing up with individuals with mental illness or substance abuse. Further, childhood physical abuse has been shown to be a significant predictor for posttraumatic stress disorder and suicide. Adverse childhood experiences confer additional risk for the mental health of service members. Psychiatric nursing implications include the importance of assessing early childhood adversity during psychosocial assessments. Providing trauma-informed strategies for treatment is an essential element of psychiatric nursing care. Copyright 2015, SLACK Incorporated.

Does the cortisol awakening response link childhood adversity to adult BMI?

PubMed

Miller, Kelly F; Arbel, Reout; Shapiro, Lauren S; Han, Sohyun C; Margolin, Gayla

2018-06-01

Childhood adversity is a risk factor for the development of obesity in adulthood. Dysregulated hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) activity, which has been associated separately with both adverse childhood experiences and obesity, has been posited as a mechanism by which stressful experiences influence body mass index (BMI); however, this mechanism has not yet been tested longitudinally. The present study uses multireporter, longitudinal data across three time points to test whether the adolescent cortisol awakening response (CAR), an index of diurnal HPA activity, mediates the association between adversity in childhood and BMI in adulthood. Eighty-two youth, mothers, and fathers reported on adverse childhood experiences from middle childhood to late adolescence. During adolescence, youth provided saliva samples three times each morning across three days, which were assayed for cortisol to calculate CAR. During early adulthood, youth reported height and weight to calculate BMI. Greater adversity predicted flatter CAR and higher young adult BMI. Flatter CAR partially mediated the association between childhood adversity and young adult BMI. Stress-related alterations to HPA activity account in part for the childhood adversity-adult obesity link. Findings are consistent with theoretical models implicating HPA alterations as linking childhood adversity to metabolic and behavioral determinants of BMI in adulthood. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Epigenetic Vestiges of Early Developmental Adversity: Childhood Stress Exposure and DNA Methylation in Adolescence

PubMed Central

Essex, Marilyn J.; Boyce, W. Thomas; Hertzman, Clyde; Lam, Lucia L.; Armstrong, Jeffrey M.; Neumann, Sarah M.A.; Kobor, Michael S.

2011-01-01

Fifteen-year-old adolescents (N=109) in a longitudinal study of child development were recruited to examine differences in DNA methylation in relation to parent reports of adversity during the adolescents’ infancy and preschool periods. Microarray technology applied to 28,000 cytosine-guanine dinucleotide (CpG) sites within DNA derived from buccal epithelial cells showed differential methylation among adolescents whose parents reported high levels of stress during their children’s early lives. Maternal stressors in infancy and paternal stressors in the preschool years were most strongly predictive of differential methylation, and the patterning of such epigenetic marks varied by children’s gender. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report of prospective associations between adversities in early childhood and the epigenetic conformation of adolescents’ genomic DNA. PMID:21883162

Childhood adversities and post-traumatic stress disorder: evidence for stress sensitisation in the World Mental Health Surveys.

PubMed

McLaughlin, Katie A; Koenen, Karestan C; Bromet, Evelyn J; Karam, Elie G; Liu, Howard; Petukhova, Maria; Ruscio, Ayelet Meron; Sampson, Nancy A; Stein, Dan J; Aguilar-Gaxiola, Sergio; Alonso, Jordi; Borges, Guilherme; Demyttenaere, Koen; Dinolova, Rumyana V; Ferry, Finola; Florescu, Silvia; de Girolamo, Giovanni; Gureje, Oye; Kawakami, Norito; Lee, Sing; Navarro-Mateu, Fernando; Piazza, Marina; Pennell, Beth-Ellen; Posada-Villa, José; Ten Have, Margreet; Viana, Maria Carmen; Kessler, Ronald C

2017-11-01

Background Although childhood adversities are known to predict increased risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after traumatic experiences, it is unclear whether this association varies by childhood adversity or traumatic experience types or by age. Aims To examine variation in associations of childhood adversities with PTSD according to childhood adversity types, traumatic experience types and life-course stage. Method Epidemiological data were analysed from the World Mental Health Surveys ( n = 27 017). Results Four childhood adversities (physical and sexual abuse, neglect, parent psychopathology) were associated with similarly increased odds of PTSD following traumatic experiences (odds ratio (OR) = 1.8), whereas the other eight childhood adversities assessed did not predict PTSD. Childhood adversity-PTSD associations did not vary across traumatic experience types, but were stronger in childhood-adolescence and early-middle adulthood than later adulthood. Conclusions Childhood adversities are differentially associated with PTSD, with the strongest associations in childhood-adolescence and early-middle adulthood. Consistency of associations across traumatic experience types suggests that childhood adversities are associated with generalised vulnerability to PTSD following traumatic experiences. © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 2017.

Childhood Adversities and Adult Cardiometabolic Health: Does the Quantity, Timing, and Type of Adversity Matter?

PubMed Central

Friedman, Esther M.; Montez, Jennifer Karas; Sheehan, Connor McDevitt; Guenewald, Tara L.; Seeman, Teresa E.

2015-01-01

Objective Adverse events in childhood can indelibly influence adult health. While evidence for this association has mounted, a fundamental set of questions about how to operationalize adverse events has been understudied. Method We used data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States to examine how quantity, timing, and types of adverse events in childhood are associated with adult cardiometabolic health. Results The best-fitting specification of quantity of events was a linear measure reflecting a dose–response relationship. Timing of event mattered less than repeated exposure to events. Regarding the type of event, academic interruptions and sexual/physical abuse were most important. Adverse childhood events elevated the risk of diabetes and obesity similarly for men and women but had a greater impact on women’s risk of heart disease. Discussion Findings demonstrate the insights that can be gleaned about the early-life origins of adult health by examining operationalization of childhood exposures. PMID:25903978

Epigenetic vestiges of early developmental adversity: childhood stress exposure and DNA methylation in adolescence.

PubMed

Essex, Marilyn J; Boyce, W Thomas; Hertzman, Clyde; Lam, Lucia L; Armstrong, Jeffrey M; Neumann, Sarah M A; Kobor, Michael S

2013-01-01

Fifteen-year-old adolescents (N = 109) in a longitudinal study of child development were recruited to examine differences in DNA methylation in relation to parent reports of adversity during the adolescents' infancy and preschool periods. Microarray technology applied to 28,000 cytosine-guanine dinucleotide sites within DNA derived from buccal epithelial cells showed differential methylation among adolescents whose parents reported high levels of stress during their children's early lives. Maternal stressors in infancy and paternal stressors in the preschool years were most strongly predictive of differential methylation, and the patterning of such epigenetic marks varied by children's gender. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of prospective associations between adversities in early childhood and the epigenetic conformation of adolescents' genomic DNA. © 2011 The Authors. Child Development © 2011 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Adverse childhood experiences and sexual victimization in adulthood.

PubMed

Ports, Katie A; Ford, Derek C; Merrick, Melissa T

2016-01-01

Understanding the link between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and sexual victimization (SV) in adulthood may provide important information about the level of risk for adult SV and sexual re-victimization among childhood sexual abuse (CSA) survivors. In the present paper, we explore the relationship between ACEs, including CSA, and SV in adulthood. Data from the CDC-Kaiser ACE Study were used to examine the effect of experiences of early adversity on adult SV. Adult HMO members (n=7,272) undergoing a routine health exam provided detailed information about ACEs that occurred at age 18 or younger and their experiences of SV in adulthood. Analyses revealed that as ACE score increased, so did risk of experiencing SV in adulthood. Each of the ACE variables was significantly associated with adult SV, with CSA being the strongest predictor of adult SV. In addition, for those who reported CSA, there was a cumulative increase in adult SV risk with each additional ACE experienced. As such, early adversity is a risk factor for adult SV. In particular, CSA is a significant risk factor for sexual re-victimization in adulthood, and additional early adversities experienced by CSA survivors may heighten adult SV risk above and beyond the risk associated with CSA alone. Given the interconnectedness among various experiences of early adversity, adult SV prevention actions must consider how other violence-related and non-violence-related traumatic experiences may exacerbate the risk conferred by CSA on subsequent victimization. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Childhood Adversity and Men’s Relationships in Adulthood: Life Course Processes and Racial Disadvantage

PubMed Central

Thomeer, Mieke Beth; Williams, Kristi; Thomas, Patricia A.; Liu, Hui

2016-01-01

Objectives: Prior U.S. population studies have found that childhood adversity influences the quality of relationships in adulthood, with emerging research suggesting that this association might be especially strong for black men. We theorize psychosocial and behavioral coping responses to early life adversity and how these responses may link early life adversity to strain in men’s relationships with their indeterminate partners and children across the life course, with attention to possible racial variation in these experiences and implications for later life well-being. Method: We analyze in-depth interviews with 15 black men and 15 white men. We use qualitative analysis techniques to connect childhood experiences to psychosocial processes in childhood and behavioral coping strategies associated with relationship experiences throughout adulthood. Results: Black men describe much stronger and more persistent childhood adversity than do white men. Findings further suggest that childhood adversity contributes to psychosocial processes (e.g., diminished sense of mastery) that may lead to ways of coping with adversity (e.g., self-medication) that are likely to contribute to relationship difficulties throughout the life span. Discussion: A life course perspective directs attention to the early life origins of cumulative patterns of social disadvantage, patterns that extend to later life. Our findings suggest psychosocial and behavioral pathways through which early life adversity may constrain and strain men’s relationships, possibly contributing to racial inequality in family relationships across the life span. PMID:26589348

Adversity in childhood linked to elevated striatal dopamine function in adulthood.

PubMed

Egerton, Alice; Valmaggia, Lucia R; Howes, Oliver D; Day, Fern; Chaddock, Christopher A; Allen, Paul; Winton-Brown, Toby T; Bloomfield, Michael A P; Bhattacharyya, Sagnik; Chilcott, Jack; Lappin, Julia M; Murray, Robin M; McGuire, Philip

2016-10-01

Childhood adversity increases the risk of psychosis in adulthood. Theoretical and animal models suggest that this effect may be mediated by increased striatal dopamine neurotransmission. The primary objective of this study was to examine the relationship between adversity in childhood and striatal dopamine function in early adulthood. Secondary objectives were to compare exposure to childhood adversity and striatal dopamine function in young people at ultra high risk (UHR) of psychosis and healthy volunteers. Sixty-seven young adults, comprising 47 individuals at UHR for psychosis and 20 healthy volunteers were recruited from the same geographic area and were matched for age, gender and substance use. Presynaptic dopamine function in the associative striatum was assessed using 18F-DOPA positron emission tomography. Childhood adversity was assessed using the Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse questionnaire. Within the sample as a whole, both severe physical or sexual abuse (T63=2.92; P=0.005), and unstable family arrangements (T57=2.80; P=0.007) in childhood were associated with elevated dopamine function in the associative striatum in adulthood. Comparison of the UHR and volunteer subgroups revealed similar incidence of childhood adverse experiences, and there was no significant group difference in dopamine function. This study provides evidence that childhood adversity is linked to elevated striatal dopamine function in adulthood. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cancer in working-age is not associated with childhood adversities.

PubMed

Korpimäki, Sonja K; Sumanen, Markku P T; Sillanmäki, Lauri H; Mattila, Kari J

2010-05-01

Early life events are studied as potential causes of cancer. The objective here was to study childhood adversities in the etiology of cancer. The material comprised a population based random sample of 25 898 individuals among the Finnish working-aged population. In 1998 they were requested through six questions in a postal questionnaire to recall their childhood adversities. The cases consisted of people with cancer diagnosed 2000-2006 and registered in the Finnish Cancer Registry (n = 384). The rest of the sample consisted of cancer-free controls. The most common adversities were prolonged financial difficulties, serious conflicts in the family and someone in the family having been seriously or chronically ill. The cancer patients reported more prolonged financial difficulties and someone seriously or chronically ill in the family. They reported less parental divorce than the controls. The associations were not statistically significant after adjusting for age, sex, education, and health behaviour. Nor was there a significant difference in the total number of childhood adversities between the study group and the controls. On the whole, these cancer patients had not experienced more childhood adversities than the controls. According to our findings, there is no cause to attribute development of cancer in working age to childhood adversities. This information may also give relief to other family members.

Long term effects of early adversity on cognitive function.

PubMed

Richards, M; Wadsworth, M E J

2004-10-01

To investigate long term effects of early adverse circumstances on cognitive function. Associations between early material home circumstances, parental divorce, maternal management and understanding, and cognitive function in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood were analysed using multiple linear regression, controlling for sex, parental SES, and birth order in 1339 males and females from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development. Early adverse circumstances were strongly associated with lower cognitive ability in childhood and adolescence, and were detectable on measures of verbal ability, memory, and speed and concentration in midlife. However, these long term effects were mostly explained by the effects of adversity on childhood or adolescent cognitive ability or by differences in educational attainment and adult social class. An exception was the effect of poor material home conditions on visual search speed at 53 years, which was maintained after controlling for adolescent ability, as well as further control for educational attainment, adult social class, physical growth, cigarette smoking, and affective state. There was no evidence of more rapid decline in memory and psychomotor function across middle age in those exposed to early adversity. The effect of early adversity on cognitive function tracks across the life course at least as far as middle age, although there was little evidence from this study of effect amplification over this interval. Nevertheless, in view of the persistence of child poverty in the industrialised world, these findings give cause for concern.

Maternal Childhood Adversity, Prepregnancy Obesity, and Gestational Weight Gain.

PubMed

Ranchod, Yamini K; Headen, Irene E; Petito, Lucia C; Deardorff, Julianna K; Rehkopf, David H; Abrams, Barbara F

2016-04-01

Growing evidence suggests that exposure to childhood adversity may influence obesity across the life course. High maternal weight complicates pregnancy and increases the risk of child obesity. This study examined the association between maternal childhood adversity and pregnancy-related weight in a large U.S. Data on 6,199 pregnancies from 2,873 women followed from 1979 to 2012 by the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 were analyzed in 2014. Associations between three adversity exposures before age 18 years (history of physical abuse, alcohol problems, or mental illness in the household) and two maternal weight outcomes (prepregnancy obesity and excessive gestational weight gain) were modeled separately using survey-adjusted log-binomial models. After adjusting for race/ethnicity and early-life socioeconomic factors, childhood physical abuse was associated with a 60% increase in the risk of prepregnancy obesity (adjusted risk ratio=1.6, 95% CI=1.1, 2.2). Household alcohol abuse was associated with a 30% increase in prepregnancy obesity (adjusted risk ratio=1.3, 95% CI=1.0, 1.7), as was household mental illness (adjusted risk ratio=1.3, 95% CI=0.8, 1.9), but the mental illness exposure was not significant. Physical abuse and household alcohol abuse were associated with a significant 20% increase in the risk of excessive gestational weight gain; mental illness was not. Adversity in early life may affect maternal weight before and during pregnancy. Screening and treating women of reproductive age for childhood adversity and its negative effects could significantly reduce obesity-related health outcomes for women and their children. Copyright © 2016 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Childhood Adversity and Pain Sensitization.

PubMed

You, Dokyoung Sophia; Meagher, Mary W

Childhood adversity is a vulnerability factor for chronic pain. However, the underlying pain mechanisms influenced by childhood adversity remain unknown. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the impact of childhood adversity on dynamic pain sensitivity in young adults. After screening for childhood adverse events and health status, healthy individuals reporting low (below median; n = 75) or high levels of adversity (the top 5%; n = 51) were invited for pain testing. Both groups underwent heat pain threshold and temporal summation of second pain (TSSP) testing after reporting depressive symptoms. TSSP refers to a progressive increase in pain intensity with repetition of identical noxious stimuli and is attributed to central sensitization. Changes in pain ratings over time (slope) were computed for TSSP sensitization and decay of subsequent aftersensations. The high-adversity group showed greater TSSP sensitization (meanslope, 0.75; SDpositive slope, 1.78), and a trend toward a slower decay (meanslope, -11.9; SD, 3.4), whereas the low-adversity group showed minimal sensitization (meanslope, 0.07; SDnear-zero slope, 1.77), F(1,123) = 5.84, p = .017 and faster decay (meanslope, -13.1; SD, 3.4), F(1,123) = 3.79, p = .054. This group difference remained significant even after adjusting for adult depressive symptoms (p = .033). No group difference was found in heat pain threshold (p = .85). Lastly, the high-adversity group showed blunted cardiac and skin conductance responses. These findings suggest that enhancement of central sensitization may provide a mechanism underlying the pain hypersensitivity and chronicity linked to childhood adversity.

Blunted Diurnal Cortisol Activity in Healthy Adults with Childhood Adversity.

PubMed

Kuras, Yuliya I; Assaf, Naomi; Thoma, Myriam V; Gianferante, Danielle; Hanlin, Luke; Chen, Xuejie; Fiksdal, Alexander; Rohleder, Nicolas

2017-01-01

Childhood adversity, such as neglect, or physical, emotional, or sexual abuse, is prevalent in the U.S. and worldwide, and connected to an elevated incidence of disease in adulthood. A pathway in this relationship might be altered hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis functioning, as a result of differential hippocampal development in early life. A blunted diurnal cortisol slope is a precursor for many disorders. While studies have focused on HPA reactivity in relation to childhood adversity, there has been markedly less research on basal HPA functioning in those with low-to-moderate adversity. Based on previous research, we hypothesized that adults with low-to-moderate childhood adversity would have altered HPA axis functioning, as evidenced by a blunted diurnal cortisol slope and altered cortisol awakening response (CAR). Healthy adults aged 18-65 ( n = 61 adults; 31 males and 30 females) completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Participants provided at-home saliva samples on two consecutive days at wake-up, and 30 min, 1, 4, 9, and 13 h later; samples were averaged over the 2 days. We found that low-to-moderate childhood adversity predicted lower morning cortisol (β = -0.34, p = 0.007, R 2 = 0.21), as well as a blunted cortisol slope (β = 2.97, p = 0.004, R 2 = 0.22), but found no association with CAR (β = 0.19, p = 0.14, R 2 = 0.12). Overall, we found that in healthy participants, low-to-moderate adversity in childhood is associated with altered basal HPA activity in adulthood. Our findings indicate that even low levels of childhood adversity may predispose individuals to disease associated with HPA dysregulation in later life.

The Painful Legacy of Childhood Violence: Migraine Headaches Among Adult Survivors of Adverse Childhood Experiences.

PubMed

Brennenstuhl, Sarah; Fuller-Thomson, Esme

2015-01-01

Childhood adversities have been associated with adult migraine in the general population. However, most research has focused on only a few types of maltreatment and has not always controlled for factors correlated with early adversities and migraine. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between early adversities and migraine, while controlling for a range of potential explanatory factors. We analyzed data from the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey - Mental Health. Using a representative sample of 10,358 men and 12,638 women, we undertook gender-specific logistic regression analyses to determine the association between number and type of self-reported childhood adversities (physical abuse, sexual abuse, and witnessing parental domestic violence) and migraine, while controlling for sociodemographics, comorbid adversities, health behaviors, depression, and anxiety. In total, 6.5% of men and 14.2% of women reported migraines. All three adversities were significantly associated with migraine for both genders, even after controlling for a range of variables. The fully adjusted odds of migraine associated with physical abuse, parental domestic violence, and sexual abuse were 1.61 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.42-1.83), 1.64 (95% CI = 1.39-1.93), and 1.32 (95% CI = 1.11-1.57), respectively, for women, and 1.50 (95% CI = 1.25-1.80), 1.52 (95% CI = 1.16-1.98), and 1.70 (95% CI = 1.22-2.36) for men. Greater number of adversities was also associated with increasing odds of migraine. Men reporting all three adversities had over three times (odds ratio = 3.26; 95% CI = 2.09-5.07) and women over two times (OR = 2.85; 95% CI = 2.25-3.60) the odds of migraine compared with those without childhood adversities. Number and type of early adversities are associated with migraine among Canadian men and women. © 2015 American Headache Society.

The impact of childhood adversity on suicidality and clinical course in treatment-resistant depression.

PubMed

Tunnard, Catherine; Rane, Lena J; Wooderson, Sarah C; Markopoulou, Kalypso; Poon, Lucia; Fekadu, Abebaw; Juruena, Mario; Cleare, Anthony J

2014-01-01

Childhood adversity is a risk factor for the development of depression and can also affect clinical course. We investigated this specifically in treatment-resistant depression (TRD). One hundred and thirty-seven patients with TRD previously admitted to an inpatient affective disorders unit were included. Clinical, demographic and childhood adversity (physical, sexual, emotional abuse; bullying victimization, traumatic events) data were obtained during admission. Associations between childhood adversity, depressive symptoms and clinical course were investigated. Most patients had experienced childhood adversity (62%), with traumatic events (35%) and bullying victimization (29%) most commonly reported. Childhood adversity was associated with poorer clinical course, including earlier age of onset, episode persistence and recurrence. Logistic regression analyses revealed childhood adversity predicted lifetime suicide attempts (OR 2.79; 95% CI 1.14, 6.84) and childhood physical abuse predicted lifetime psychosis (OR 3.42; 95% CI 1.00, 11.70). The cross-sectional design and retrospective measurement of childhood adversity are limitations of the study. Childhood adversity was common amongst these TRD patients and was associated with poor clinical course, psychosis and suicide attempts. Routine assessment of early adversity may help identify at risk individuals and inform clinical intervention. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Public Health Burden of Early Adversity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schlueter, Lisa J.; Watamura, Sarah Enos

2017-01-01

Severe and chronic stress in early childhood has enormous physical and mental health costs across an individual's lifespan. Unfortunately, exposure to early life adversity is common, and costs accrue to individuals and society. This article highlights several promising approaches to buffer children from the negative health consequences associated…

Adverse Childhood Experiences of Violent Female Offenders: A Comparison of Homicide and Sexual Perpetrators.

PubMed

Pflugradt, Dawn M; Allen, Bradley P; Zintsmaster, Amanda J

2018-06-01

Adverse childhood experiences are associated with a multitude of health and social problems. In addition to an increased risk of poor health, mental disorders, and substance abuse, childhood maltreatment is also significantly related to adult violent offending. Although gender-specific analyses suggest that early childhood maltreatment precedes later violence for males across offense categories, it is unknown whether this association also applies to different types of female offenders. This study explores the types and quantity of adverse childhood experiences for two groups of violent female offenders: perpetrators of intentional homicide ( N = 28) and perpetrators of sexual offenses ( N = 47). A nonparametric analysis using odds ratios (OR) indicated that female homicide perpetrators experienced significantly more adverse childhood experiences (as measured by the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire) than female sex offenders. Implications for future research are discussed.

Adverse experiences in childhood, adulthood neighbourhood disadvantage and health behaviours.

PubMed

Halonen, Jaana I; Vahtera, Jussi; Kivimäki, Mika; Pentti, Jaana; Kawachi, Ichiro; Subramanian, S V

2014-08-01

Early life adversities may play a role in the associations observed between neighbourhood contextual factors and health behaviours. We examined whether self-reported adverse experiences in childhood (parental divorce, long-term financial difficulties, serious conflicts, serious/chronic illness or alcohol problem in the family, and frequent fear of a family member) explain the association between adulthood neighbourhood disadvantage and co-occurrence of behavioural risk factors (smoking, moderate/heavy alcohol use, physical inactivity). Study population consisted of 31 271 public sector employees from Finland. The cross-sectional associations were analysed using two-level cumulative logistic regression models. Childhood adverse experiences were associated with the sum of risk factors (cumulative OR 1.32 (95% CI 1.25 to 1.40) among those reporting 3-6 vs 0 adversities). Adverse experiences did not attenuate the association between neighbourhood disadvantage and risk factors; this cumulative OR was 1.52 (95% CI 1.43 to 1.62) in the highest versus lowest quartile of neighbourhood disadvantage when not including adversities, and 1.50 (95% CI 1.40 to 1.60) when adjusted for childhood adversities. In adversity-stratified analyses those reporting 3-6 adversities had 1.60-fold (95% CI 1.42 to 1.80) likelihood of risk factors if living in the neighbourhood of the highest disadvantage, while in those with fewer adversities this likelihood was 1.09-1.34-fold (95% CI 0.98 to 1.53) (p interaction 0.07). Childhood adverse experiences and adulthood neighbourhood disadvantage were associated with behavioural risk factors. Childhood experiences did not explain associations between neighbourhood disadvantage and the risk factors. However, those with more adverse experiences may be susceptible for the socioeconomic conditions of neighbourhoods. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Alcohol Consumption in Midlife and Early Old-Age

PubMed Central

Leung, Jessica Pui Kei; Britton, Annie; Bell, Steven

2016-01-01

Aims To examine the individual and cumulative effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on alcohol consumption in midlife and early old-age, and the role of ACEs in 10-year drinking trajectories across midlife. Methods Data were from the Whitehall II study, a longitudinal British civil service-based cohort study (N = 7870, 69.5% male). Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the individual and cumulative effects of ACEs on weekly alcohol consumption. Mixed-effect multilevel modelling was used to explore the relationship between ACEs and change in alcohol consumption longitudinally. Results Participants who were exposed to parental arguments/fights in childhood were 1.24 (95% CI 1.06, 1.45) times more likely to drink at hazardous levels in midlife (mean age 56 years) after controlling for covariates and other ACEs. For each additional exposure to an ACE, the risk of hazardous drinking versus moderate drinking was increased by 1.12 (95% CI 1.03, 1.21) after adjusting for sex, age, adult socio-economic status, ethnicity and marital status. No associations between ACEs and increased risk of hazardous drinking in early old-age (mean age 66 years) were found. In longitudinal analyses, ACEs did not significantly influence 10-year drinking trajectories across midlife. Conclusion The effect of exposure to parental arguments on hazardous drinking persists into midlife. PMID:26553290

Early Childhood Obesity Risk Factors: Socioeconomic Adversity, Family Dysfunction, Offspring Distress, and Junk Food Self-Medication.

PubMed

Hemmingsson, Erik

2018-06-01

To explore the sequence and interaction of infancy and early childhood risk factors, particularly relating to disturbances in the social environment, and how the consequences of such exposures can promote weight gain and obesity. This review will argue that socioeconomic adversity is a key upstream catalyst that sets the stage for critical midstream risk factors such as family strain and dysfunction, offspring insecurity, stress, emotional turmoil, low self-esteem, and poor mental health. These midstream risk factors, particularly stress and emotional turmoil, create a more or less perfect foil for calorie-dense junk food self-medication and subtle addiction, to alleviate uncomfortable psychological and emotional states. Disturbances in the social environment during infancy and early childhood appear to play a critical role in weight gain and obesity, through such mechanisms as insecurity, stress, and emotional turmoil, eventually leading to junk food self-medication and subtle addiction.

Colorectal cancer screening and adverse childhood experiences: Which adversities matter?

PubMed

Alcalá, Héctor E; Keim-Malpass, Jessica; Mitchell, Emma

2017-07-01

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) have been associated with an increased risk of a variety of diseases, including cancer. However, research has not paid enough attention to the association between ACEs and cancer screening. As such, the present study examined the association between ACEs and ever using colorectal cancer (CRC) screening, among adults age 50 and over. Analyses used the 2011 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (n=24,938) to model odds of ever engaging in CRC screening from nine different adversities. Bivariate and multivariate models were fit. In bivariate models, physical abuse, having parents that were divorced or separated, and living in a household where adults treated each other violently were associated with lower odds of engaging in CRC. In multivariate models that accounted for potential confounders, emotional and sexual abuse were each associated with higher odds of engaging in CRC. Results suggest potential pathways by which early childhood experiences can impact future health behaviors. Future research should examine this association longitudinally. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adverse childhood experiences and health anxiety in adulthood.

PubMed

Reiser, Sarah J; McMillan, Katherine A; Wright, Kristi D; Asmundson, Gordon J G

2014-03-01

Childhood experiences are thought to predispose a person to the development of health anxiety later in life. However, there is a lack of research investigating the influence of specific adverse experiences (e.g., childhood abuse, household dysfunction) on this condition. The current study examined the cumulative influence of multiple types of childhood adversities on health anxiety in adulthood. Adults 18-59 years of age (N=264) completed a battery of measures to assess adverse childhood experiences, health anxiety, and associated constructs (i.e., negative affect and trait anxiety). Significant associations were observed between adverse childhood experiences, health anxiety, and associated constructs. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicted that adverse childhood experiences were predictive of health anxiety in adulthood; however, the unique contribution of these experience were no longer significant following the inclusion of the other variables of interest. Subsequently, mediation analyses indicated that both negative affect and trait anxiety independently mediated the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and health anxiety in adulthood. Increased exposure to adverse childhood experiences is associated with higher levels of health anxiety in adulthood; this relationship is mediated through negative affect and trait anxiety. Findings support the long-term negative impact of cumulative adverse childhood experiences and emphasize the importance of addressing negative affect and trait anxiety in efforts to prevent and treat health anxiety. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effect of childhood adversity on 4-year outcome in individuals at ultra high risk for psychosis in the Dutch Early Detection Intervention Evaluation (EDIE-NL) Trial.

PubMed

Kraan, Tamar C; Ising, Helga K; Fokkema, Marjolein; Velthorst, Eva; van den Berg, David P G; Kerkhoven, Margot; Veling, Wim; Smit, Filip; Linszen, Don H; Nieman, Dorien H; Wunderink, Lex; Boonstra, Nynke; Klaassen, Rianne M C; Dragt, Sara; Rietdijk, Judith; de Haan, Lieuwe; van der Gaag, Mark

2017-01-01

Childhood adversity is associated with a range of mental disorders, functional impairment and higher health care costs in adulthood. In this study we evaluated if childhood adversity was predictive of adverse clinical and functional outcomes and health care costs in a sample of patients at ultra-high risk (UHR) for developing a psychosis. Structural Equation Modeling was used to examine the effect of childhood adversity on depression, anxiety, transition to psychosis and overall functioning at 4-year follow-up. In addition, we evaluated economic costs of childhood adversity in terms of health care use and productivity loss. Data pertain to 105 UHR participants of the Dutch Early Detection and Intervention Evaluation (EDIE-NL). Physical abuse was associated with higher depression rates (b=0.381, p=0.012) and lower social functional outcome (b=-0.219, p=0.017) at 4-year follow-up. In addition, emotional neglect was negatively associated with social functioning (b=-0.313, p=0.018). We did not find evidence that childhood adversity was associated with transition to psychosis, but the experience of childhood adversity was associated with excess health care costs at follow-up. The data indicate long-term negative effects of childhood adversity on depression, social functioning and health care costs at follow-up in a sample of UHR patients. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Developmental Patterns of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Current Symptoms and Impairment in Youth Referred For Trauma-Specific Services.

PubMed

Grasso, Damion J; Dierkhising, Carly B; Branson, Christopher E; Ford, Julian D; Lee, Robert

2016-07-01

By the time children reach adolescence, most have experienced at least one type of severe adversity and many have been exposed to multiple types. However, whether patterns of adverse childhood experiences are consistent or change across developmental epochs in childhood is not known. Retrospective reports of adverse potentially traumatic childhood experiences in 3 distinct developmental epochs (early childhood, 0- to 5-years-old; middle childhood, 6- to 12-years-old; and adolescence, 13- to 18-years-old) were obtained from adolescents (N = 3485) referred to providers in the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) for trauma-focused assessment and treatment. Results from latent class analysis (LCA) revealed increasingly complex patterns of adverse/traumatic experiences in middle childhood and adolescence compared to early childhood. Depending upon the specific developmental epoch assessed, different patterns of adverse/traumatic experiences were associated with gender and with adolescent psychopathology (e.g., internalizing/externalizing behavior problems), and juvenile justice involvement. A multiply exposed subgroup that had severe problems in adolescence was evident in each of the 3 epochs, but their specific types of adverse/traumatic experiences differed depending upon the developmental epoch. Implications for research and clinical practice are identified.

Early life adversity and adult biological risk profiles.

PubMed

Friedman, Esther M; Karlamangla, Arun S; Gruenewald, Tara L; Koretz, Brandon; Seeman, Teresa E

2015-01-01

To determine whether there is a relationship between early life adversity (ELA) and biological parameters known to predict health risks and to examine the extent to which circumstances in midlife mediate this relationship. We analyzed data on 1180 respondents from the biomarker subsample of the second wave of the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States. ELA assessments were based on childhood socioeconomic disadvantage (i.e., on welfare, perceived low income, and less educated parents) and other stressors (e.g., parental death, parental divorce, and parental physical abuse). The outcome variable was cumulative allostatic load (AL), a marker of biological risk. We also incorporate information on adult circumstances, including than following: education, social relationships, and health behaviors. Childhood socioeconomic adversity and physical abuse were associated with increased AL (B = 0.094, standard error = 0.041, and B = 0.263, standard error = 0.091 respectively), with nonsignificant associations for parental divorce and death with AL. Adult education mediated the relationship between socioeconomic ELA and cumulative AL to the point of nonsignificance, with this factor alone explaining nearly 40% of the relationship. The association between childhood physical abuse and AL remained even after adjusting for adult educational attainments, social relationships, and health behaviors. These associations were most pronounced for secondary stress systems, including inflammation, cardiovascular function, and lipid metabolism. The physiological consequences of early life socioeconomic adversity are attenuated by achieving high levels of schooling later on. The adverse consequences of childhood physical abuse, on the other hand, persist in multivariable-adjusted analysis.

Enhanced prefrontal-amygdala connectivity following childhood adversity as a protective mechanism against internalizing in adolescence.

PubMed

Herringa, Ryan J; Burghy, Cory A; Stodola, Diane E; Fox, Michelle E; Davidson, Richard J; Essex, Marilyn J

2016-07-01

Much research has focused on the deleterious neurobiological effects of childhood adversity that may underlie internalizing disorders. While most youth show emotional adaptation following adversity, the corresponding neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. In this longitudinal community study, we examined the associations among childhood family adversity, adolescent internalizing symptoms, and their interaction on regional brain activation and amygdala/hippocampus functional connectivity during emotion processing in 132 adolescents. Consistent with prior work, childhood adversity predicted heightened amygdala reactivity to negative, but not positive, images in adolescence. However, amygdala reactivity was not related to internalizing symptoms. Furthermore, childhood adversity predicted increased fronto-amygdala connectivity to negative, but not positive, images, yet only in lower internalizing adolescents. Childhood adversity also predicted increased fronto-hippocampal connectivity to negative images, but was not moderated by internalizing. These findings were unrelated to adolescence adversity or externalizing symptoms, suggesting specificity to childhood adversity and adolescent internalizing. Together, these findings suggest that adaptation to childhood adversity is associated with augmentation of fronto-subcortical circuits specifically for negative emotional stimuli. Conversely, insufficient enhancement of fronto-amygdala connectivity, with increasing amygdala reactivity, may represent a neural signature of vulnerability for internalizing by late adolescence. These findings implicate early childhood as a critical period in determining the brain's adaptation to adversity, and suggest that even normative adverse experiences can have significant impact on neurodevelopment and functioning. These results offer potential neural mechanisms of adaptation and vulnerability which could be used in the prediction of risk for psychopathology following childhood

Adverse childhood experiences and smoking status in five states.

PubMed

Ford, Earl S; Anda, Robert F; Edwards, Valerie J; Perry, Geraldine S; Zhao, Guixiang; Li, Chaoyang; Croft, Janet B

2011-09-01

Our objective was to examine the associations between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and smoking behavior among a random sample of adults living in five U.S. states. We used data from 25,809 participants of the 2009 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System to assess the relationship of each of the 8 adverse childhood experiences and the adverse childhood experience score to smoking status. Some 59.4% of men and women reported at least one adverse childhood experience. Each of the eight adverse childhood experiences measures was significantly associated with smoking status after adjustment for demographic variables. The prevalence ratios for current and ever smoking increased in a positive graded fashion as the adverse childhood experience score increased. Among adults who reported no adverse childhood experiences, 13.0% were currently smoking and 38.3% had ever smoked. Compared to participants with an adverse childhood experience score of 0, those with an adverse childhood experience score of 5 or more were more likely to be a current smoker (adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR): 2.22, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.92-2.57) and to have ever smoked (aPR: 1.80, 95% CI: 1.67-1.93). Further research is warranted to determine whether the prevention of and interventions for adverse childhood experiences might reduce the burden of smoking-related illness in the general population. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Adverse childhood events, substance abuse, and measures of affiliation.

PubMed

Zlotnick, Cheryl; Tam, Tammy; Robertson, Marjorie J

2004-08-01

Adverse childhood events may influence later behaviors, including adulthood substance use and social affiliation. Studies have noted high prevalence rates of adverse childhood experiences and adulthood substance abuse among homeless adults. Using an existing longitudinal, countywide probability sample of 397 homeless adults, we examine the relationships among adverse childhood events on adulthood substance use, and the relationship of these variables to affiliation. Almost 75% of the sample had experienced an adverse childhood event. Path analysis indicated adulthood substance abuse mediated the inverse relationship between adverse childhood events and two measures of adulthood affiliation. Thus, although there is a relationship between adverse childhood events and adulthood substance use, it is adulthood substance use that determines most aspects of affiliation.

Childhood adversity and midlife suicidal ideation.

PubMed

Stansfeld, S A; Clark, C; Smuk, M; Power, C; Davidson, T; Rodgers, B

2017-01-01

Childhood adversity predicts adolescent suicidal ideation but there are few studies examining whether the risk of childhood adversity extends to suicidal ideation in midlife. We hypothesized that childhood adversity predicts midlife suicidal ideation and this is partially mediated by adolescent internalizing disorders, externalizing disorders and adult exposure to life events and interpersonal difficulties. At 45 years, 9377 women and men from the UK 1958 British Birth Cohort Study participated in a clinical survey. Childhood adversity was prospectively assessed at the ages of 7, 11 and 16 years. Suicidal ideation at midlife was assessed by the depressive ideas subscale of the Revised Clinical Interview Schedule. Internalizing and externalizing disorders were measured by the Rutter scales at 16 years. Life events, periods of unemployment, partnership separations and alcohol dependence were measured through adulthood. Illness in the household, paternal absence, institutional care, parental divorce and retrospective reports of parental physical and sexual abuse predicted suicidal ideation at 45 years. Three or more childhood adversities were associated with suicidal ideation at 45 years [odds ratio (OR) 4.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.67-6.94]. Psychological distress at 16 years partially mediated the associations of physical abuse (OR 3.41, 95% CI 2.29-5.75), sexual abuse (OR 4.99, 95% CI 2.90-11.16) with suicidal ideation. Adult life events partially mediated the association of parental divorce (OR 6.34, 95% CI -7.16 to 36.75) and physical (OR 9.59, 95% CI 4.97-27.88) and sexual abuse (OR 6.59, 95% CI 2.40-38.36) with suicidal ideation at 45 years. Adversity in childhood predicts suicidal ideation in midlife, partially mediated by adolescent internalizing and externalizing disorders, adult life events and interpersonal difficulties. Understanding the pathways from adversity to suicidal ideation can inform suicide prevention and the targeting of preventive

Offenders in emerging adulthood: School maladjustment, childhood adversities, and prediction of aggressive antisocial behaviors.

PubMed

Wallinius, Märta; Delfin, Carl; Billstedt, Eva; Nilsson, Thomas; Anckarsäter, Henrik; Hofvander, Björn

2016-10-01

Early psychosocial adversities and maladjustment, such as childhood maltreatment and school adjustment problems, have been linked to an increased risk of aggressive antisocial behaviors. Yet, clinical studies of subjects at the highest risk of persistence in such behaviors are rare, especially during the life-changing transition years of emerging adulthood. This study describes early predictors of aggressive antisocial behaviors in a large, nationally representative cohort of Swedish, male violent offenders in emerging adulthood (age range = 18-25 years; N = 270). First, data on psychosocial background characteristics and aggressive antisocial behaviors (including age at onset) are provided. Second, early predictors of aggressive antisocial behaviors are tested in bivariate and multivariate interactive models. The offenders demonstrated a diversity of early onset adversities and disruptive behaviors, in line with established risk factors for subsequent criminality and adverse outcomes in a variety of life domains. Severe school adjustment problems, especially bullying others and early onset truancy, were important and interrelated predictors of aggressive antisocial behaviors over the lifetime, whereas childhood adversities such as parental substance or alcohol abuse and repeated exposure to violence at home during childhood were interrelated predictors of aggressive antisocial behaviors, albeit with less statistical importance. The findings stress the importance of early identification of individuals in the risk zone of developing severe and persistent aggressive antisocial behaviors and of early preventive interventions directed toward families with high-risk profiles. The findings also provide initial guidelines on which psychosocial background risk factors that need to be considered first-hand in early interventions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Adverse Childhood Experiences among Men with Schizophrenia.

PubMed

Vallejos, Miguel; Cesoni, Oscar M; Farinola, Romina; Bertone, Matías S; Prokopez, Cintia R

2017-12-01

Individuals who suffered traumatic events or adverse experiences during their childhood have an increased risk of developing during adulthood physical problems, aggressive behavior, and psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia. Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia have higher rates of traumatic experiences during childhood than the general population, and those who suffered multiple traumatic events have an increased risk of disease relapse. The current study aims to determine the prevalence of different types of adverse experiences during childhood among a male patient sample with schizophrenia. An Observational descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at Jose T. Borda Hospital, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Participants included 51 male patients between the ages of 18 and 63 years with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, applying a socio-demographic questionnaire, SCID I and II scales to assess psychiatric diagnosis, and the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Questionnaire to evaluate the presence of adverse childhood experiences. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS 22 software. We observed that 94% of participants had experienced at least one adverse childhood experience. Most (63%) suffered from 4 or more disruptive child events. A high prevalence of family history of mental illness was found, also emotional abuse and neglect. Most traumatic events occurred within the family group. It was found a moderately significant relationship between patients who suffered adverse events and the presence of auditory hallucinations.

Childhood adversity, social support, and telomere length among perinatal women.

PubMed

Mitchell, Amanda M; Kowalsky, Jennifer M; Epel, Elissa S; Lin, Jue; Christian, Lisa M

2018-01-01

Adverse perinatal health outcomes are heightened among women with psychosocial risk factors, including childhood adversity and a lack of social support. Biological aging could be one pathway by which such outcomes occur. However, data examining links between psychosocial factors and indicators of biological aging among perinatal women are limited. The current study examined the associations of childhood socioeconomic status (SES), childhood trauma, and current social support with telomere length in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in a sample of 81 women assessed in early, mid, and late pregnancy as well as 7-11 weeks postpartum. Childhood SES was defined as perceived childhood social class and parental educational attainment. Measures included the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and average telomere length in PBMCs. Per a linear mixed model, telomere length did not change across pregnancy and postpartum visits; thus, subsequent analyses defined telomere length as the average across all available timepoints. ANCOVAs showed group differences by perceived childhood social class, maternal and paternal educational attainment, and current family social support, with lower values corresponding with shorter telomeres, after adjustment for possible confounds. No effects of childhood trauma or social support from significant others or friends on telomere length were observed. Findings demonstrate that while current SES was not related to telomeres, low childhood SES, independent of current SES, and low family social support were distinct risk factors for cellular aging in women. These data have relevance for understanding potential mechanisms by which early life deprivation of socioeconomic and relationship resources affect maternal health. In turn, this has potential significance for intergenerational transmission of telomere length. The predictive value of

Impact of early life adversity on EMG stress reactivity of the trapezius muscle.

PubMed

Luijcks, Rosan; Vossen, Catherine J; Roggeveen, Suzanne; van Os, Jim; Hermens, Hermie J; Lousberg, Richel

2016-09-01

Human and animal research indicates that exposure to early life adversity increases stress sensitivity later in life. While behavioral markers of adversity-induced stress sensitivity have been suggested, physiological markers remain to be elucidated. It is known that trapezius muscle activity increases during stressful situations. The present study examined to what degree early life adverse events experienced during early childhood (0-11 years) and adolescence (12-17 years) moderate experimentally induced electromyographic (EMG) stress activity of the trapezius muscles, in an experimental setting. In a general population sample (n = 115), an anticipatory stress effect was generated by presenting a single unpredictable and uncontrollable electrical painful stimulus at t = 3 minutes. Subjects were unaware of the precise moment of stimulus delivery and its intensity level. Linear and nonlinear time courses in EMG activity were modeled using multilevel analysis. The study protocol included 2 experimental sessions (t = 0 and t = 6 months) allowing for examination of reliability.Results show that EMG stress reactivity during the stress paradigm was consistently stronger in people with higher levels of early life adverse events; early childhood adversity had a stronger moderating effect than adolescent adversity. The impact of early life adversity on EMG stress reactivity may represent a reliable facet that can be used in both clinical and nonclinical studies.

Understanding and Promoting Resilience in the Context of Adverse Childhood Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sciaraffa, Mary A.; Zeanah, Paula D.; Zeanah, Charles H.

2018-01-01

Brain development in the early years is especially susceptible to toxic stress caused by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). According to epigenetics research, toxic stress has the capacity to physically change a child's brain and be hardwired into the child's biology via genes in the DNA. The compelling nature of the impact of early adversity…

Adversity in childhood and measures of aging in midlife: Findings from a cohort of british women.

PubMed

Anderson, Emma L; Heron, Jon; Ben-Shlomo, Yoav; Kuh, Diana; Cooper, Rachel; Lawlor, Debbie A; Fraser, Abigail; Howe, Laura D

2017-09-01

Very few studies have assessed whether socioeconomic and psychosocial adversity during childhood are associated with objective measures of aging later in life. We assessed associations of socioeconomic position (SEP) and total psychosocial adversity during childhood, with objectively measured cognitive and physical capability in women during midlife. Adverse childhood experiences were retrospectively reported at mean ages 28-30 years in women from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents And Children (N = 2,221). We investigated associations of childhood SEP and total psychosocial adversity, with composite measures of cognitive and physical capability at mean age 51 years. There was evidence that, compared with participants whose fathers had professional occupations, participants whose fathers had managerial/technical, skilled nonmanual, skilled manual, and partly or unskilled manual occupations had, on average, lower physical and cognitive capability. There was a clear trend for increasing magnitudes of association with lowering childhood SEP. There was also evidence that greater total psychosocial adversity in childhood was associated with lower physical capability. Total psychosocial adversity in childhood was not associated with cognitive capability. Lower SEP in childhood is detrimental to cognitive and physical capability in midlife, at least in part, independently of subsequent SEP in adulthood. Greater psychosocial adversity in childhood is associated with poorer physical capability, independently of social disadvantage in childhood. Our findings highlight the need for interventions to both identify and support children experiencing socioeconomic or psychosocial of adversity as early as possible. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Adversity in Childhood and Measures of Aging in Midlife: Findings From a Cohort of British Women

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Very few studies have assessed whether socioeconomic and psychosocial adversity during childhood are associated with objective measures of aging later in life. We assessed associations of socioeconomic position (SEP) and total psychosocial adversity during childhood, with objectively measured cognitive and physical capability in women during midlife. Adverse childhood experiences were retrospectively reported at mean ages 28–30 years in women from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents And Children (N = 2,221). We investigated associations of childhood SEP and total psychosocial adversity, with composite measures of cognitive and physical capability at mean age 51 years. There was evidence that, compared with participants whose fathers had professional occupations, participants whose fathers had managerial/technical, skilled nonmanual, skilled manual, and partly or unskilled manual occupations had, on average, lower physical and cognitive capability. There was a clear trend for increasing magnitudes of association with lowering childhood SEP. There was also evidence that greater total psychosocial adversity in childhood was associated with lower physical capability. Total psychosocial adversity in childhood was not associated with cognitive capability. Lower SEP in childhood is detrimental to cognitive and physical capability in midlife, at least in part, independently of subsequent SEP in adulthood. Greater psychosocial adversity in childhood is associated with poorer physical capability, independently of social disadvantage in childhood. Our findings highlight the need for interventions to both identify and support children experiencing socioeconomic or psychosocial of adversity as early as possible. PMID:28891666

Rethinking childhood adversity in chronic fatigue syndrome.

PubMed

Clark, James E; Davidson, Sean L; Maclachlan, Laura; Newton, Julia L; Watson, Stuart

2018-01-01

Background: Previous studies have consistently shown increased rates of childhood adversity in chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). However, such aetiopathogenic studies of CFS are potentially confounded by co-morbidity and misdiagnosis particularly with depression. Purpose: We examined the relationship between rates of childhood adversity using two complimentary approaches (1) a sample of CFS patients who had no lifetime history of depression and (2) a modelling approach. Methods: Childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ) administered to a sample of 52 participants with chronic fatigue syndrome and 19 controls who did not meet criteria for a psychiatric disorder (confirmed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV). Subsequently, Mediation Analysis (Baye's Rules) was used to establish the risk childhood adversity poses for CFS with and without depression. Results: In a cohort of CFS patients with depression comprehensively excluded, CTQ scores were markedly lower than in all previous studies and, in contrast to these previous studies, not increased compared with healthy controls. Post-hoc analysis showed that CTQ scores correlated with the number of depressive symptoms during the lifetime worst period of low mood. The probability of developing CFS given a history of childhood trauma is 4%, a two-fold increased risk compared to the general population. However, much of this risk is mediated by the concomitant development of major depression. Conclusions: The data suggests that previous studies showing a relationship between childhood adversity and CFS may be attributable to the confounding effects of co-morbid or misdiagnosed depressive disorder. Abbreviations: CFS: Chronic fatigue syndrome; CTQ: Childhood trauma questionnaire; MDD: Major depressive disorder; CA: Childhood adversity; P : Probability.

Severity of mental illness as a result of multiple childhood adversities: US National Epidemiologic Survey.

PubMed

Curran, Emma; Adamson, Gary; Stringer, Maurice; Rosato, Michael; Leavey, Gerard

2016-05-01

To examine patterns of childhood adversity, their long-term consequences and the combined effect of different childhood adversity patterns as predictors of subsequent psychopathology. Secondary analysis of data from the US National Epidemiologic Survey on alcohol and related conditions. Using latent class analysis to identify childhood adversity profiles; and using multinomial logistic regression to validate and further explore these profiles with a range of associated demographic and household characteristics. Finally, confirmatory factor analysis substantiated initial latent class analysis findings by investigating a range of mental health diagnoses. Latent class analysis generated a three-class model of childhood adversity in which 60 % of participants were allocated to a low adversity class; 14 % to a global adversities class (reporting exposures for all the derived latent classes); and 26 % to a domestic emotional and physical abuse class (exposed to a range of childhood adversities). Confirmatory Factor analysis defined an internalising-externalising spectrum to represent lifetime reporting patterns of mental health disorders. Using logistic regression, both adversity groups showed specific gender and race/ethnicity differences, related family discord and increased psychopathology. We identified underlying patterns in the exposure to childhood adversity and associated mental health. These findings are informative in their description of the configuration of adversities, rather than focusing solely on the cumulative aspect of experience. Amelioration of longer-term negative consequences requires early identification of psychopathology risk factors that can inform protective and preventive interventions. This study highlights the utility of screening for childhood adversities when individuals present with symptoms of psychiatric disorders.

Dissociation in patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: What is the role of different types of childhood adversity?

PubMed

Schroeder, Katrin; Langeland, Willemien; Fisher, Helen L; Huber, Christian G; Schäfer, Ingo

2016-07-01

Our study aimed to explore the effects of different types of adverse childhood experiences (e.g. domestic violence, early loss, parental dysfunction, sexual and physical abuse) as well as experiences of sexual and physical abuse in adulthood on dissociative symptoms in adult patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. 145 patients were examined for psychotic symptoms with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), for dissociative symptoms with the German version of the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES) and for adverse experiences in childhood and adulthood with the Structured Trauma Interview (STI). Childhood physical abuse was reported by 32%, childhood sexual abuse by 17% of the patients. Other forms of childhood adversity were also quite common; 18% had witnessed domestic violence, 26% reported early loss, and nearly half of patients reported at least one condition potentially related to parental dysfunction. The DES total score was significantly associated with childhood sexual abuse, witnessing of domestic violence and paternal dysfunction, as well as with physical violence in adulthood. In the final regression model, reports of paternal dysfunction and sexual abuse in childhood were independently associated with adult dissociation. Variance in dissociative symptoms was mainly explained by paternal dysfunction (18%). Substantial rates of childhood adversity were found and specific associations were evident with adult dissociation amongst psychosis patients who reported sexual abuse or paternal dysfunction in childhood. Therefore, it is important that patients with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders are routinely asked about a broad range of possible adverse childhood experiences in order to provide appropriate interventions. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

[Association between adverse experiences in childhood and risk of chronic diseases in adulthood].

PubMed

Nie, Junyan; Yu, Honghui; Wang, Zhiqiang; Wang, Leilei; Han, Juan; Wang, Youjie; Du, Yukai; Shen, Min

2015-09-01

To analyze the prevalence and characteristics of childhood adverse experiences among adults aged 18-59 years and understand the association between childhood adverse experiences and risk of chronic diseases in adulthood. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a questionnaire among adults aged 18-59 years selected through cluster random sampling from 3 communities in Macheng, Hubei province. Uinivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the association between adverse experiences in childhood and the risk of chronic diseases in adulthood. A total of 1 767 adults aged 18-59 years were surveyed and 1 501 valid questionnaires were returned. The average age was (36.32± 10.20) years for males and (35.72±9.08) years for females. The prevalence rate of childhood adverse experiences was 66.22%. The risk of chronic disease in adults increased with the increase of the score indicating childhood adverse experiences (Z=-5.902 1, P<0.000 1). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that being physically abused (OR=1.93, 95% CI: 1.41-2.64), substance abuse in family (OR=2.82, 95% CI: 1.16-6.80), being bullied (OR=2.59, 95% CI: 1.39-4.80) and parents separation/divorce (OR=1.51, 95% CI: 1.09-2.09) were significantly associated with risk of chronic diseases in adulthood. The prevalence of adverse childhood experiences was high in adults aged 18-59 years, which was significantly associated with the risk of chronic diseases in adulthood. Early prevention of chronic diseases should be conducted in childhood.

Adverse childhood experiences and adult smoking, Nebraska, 2011.

PubMed

Yeoman, Kristin; Safranek, Thomas; Buss, Bryan; Cadwell, Betsy L; Mannino, David

2013-09-19

Smoking is a public health risk; the prevalence of smoking among adults in Nebraska is 18.4%. Studies indicate that maltreatment of children alters their brain development, possibly increasing risk for tobacco use. Previous studies have documented associations between childhood maltreatment and adult health behaviors, demonstrating the influence of adverse experiences on tobacco use. We examined prevalence and associations between adverse childhood experiences and smoking among Nebraskans. We analyzed 2011 Nebraska Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (Adverse Childhood Experience module) data, defining adverse childhood experience exposures as physical, sexual, and verbal abuse (ie, direct exposures), and household dysfunction associated with mental illness, substance abuse, divorce, domestic violence, and living with persons with incarceration histories (ie, environmental exposures). We estimated prevalence of exposures, taking into account the complex survey design. We used logistic regression with predicted margins to estimate adjusted relative risk for smoking by direct or environmental exposure. Approximately 51% of Nebraskans experienced 1 or more adverse childhood events; 7% experienced 5 or more. Prevalence of environmental exposures (42%) was significantly higher than that of direct exposures (31%). Prevalence of individual exposures ranged from 6% (incarceration of a household member) to 25% (verbal abuse). Adjusted relative risks of smoking for direct and environmental exposures were 1.5 and 1.8, respectively. We present a new method of evaluating adverse childhood experience data. Prevalence of adverse childhood experiences is high among Nebraskans, and these exposures are associated with smoking. State-specific strategies to monitor adverse events among children and provide interventions might help to decrease the smoking rate in this population.

Telomere length and early severe social deprivation: linking early adversity and cellular aging

PubMed Central

Drury, SS; Theall, K; Gleason, MM; Smyke, AT; De Vivo, I; Wong, JYY; Fox, NA; Zeanah, CH; Nelson, CA

2012-01-01

Accelerated telomere length attrition has been associated with psychological stress and early adversity in adults; however, no studies have examined whether telomere length in childhood is associated with early experiences. The Bucharest Early Intervention Project is a unique randomized controlled trial of foster care placement compared with continued care in institutions. As a result of the study design, participants were exposed to a quantified range of time in institutional care, and represented an ideal population in which to examine the association between a specific early adversity, institutional care and telomere length. We examined the association between average relative telomere length, telomere repeat copy number to single gene copy number (T/S) ratio and exposure to institutional care quantified as the percent of time at baseline (mean age 22 months) and at 54 months of age that each child lived in the institution. A significant negative correlation between T/S ratio and percentage of time was observed. Children with greater exposure to institutional care had significantly shorter relative telomere length in middle childhood. Gender modified this main effect. The percentage of time in institutional care at baseline significantly predicted telomere length in females, whereas the percentage of institutional care at 54 months was strongly predictive of telomere length in males. This is the first study to demonstrate an association between telomere length and institutionalization, the first study to find an association between adversity and telomere length in children, and contributes to the growing literature linking telomere length and early adversity. PMID:21577215

Adverse childhood experiences in the lives of female sex offenders.

PubMed

Levenson, Jill S; Willis, Gwenda M; Prescott, David S

2015-06-01

This study explored the prevalence of early trauma in a sample of U.S. female sexual offenders (N = 47) using the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) scale. Compared with females in the general population, sex offenders had more than three times the odds of child sexual abuse, four times the odds of verbal abuse, and more than three times the odds of emotional neglect and having an incarcerated family member. Half of the female sex offenders had been sexually abused as a child. Only 20% endorsed zero adverse childhood experiences (compared with 35% of the general female population) and 41% endorsed four or more (compared with 15% of the general female population). Higher ACE scores were associated with having younger victims. Multiple maltreatments often co-occurred in households with other types of dysfunction, suggesting that many female sex offenders were raised within a disordered social environment by adults with problems of their own who were ill-equipped to protect their daughters from harm. By enhancing our understanding of the frequency and correlates of early adverse experiences, we can better devise trauma-informed interventions that respond to the clinical needs of female sex offender clients. © The Author(s) 2014.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Childhood Autobiographical Memory Disturbance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, David W.; Anda, Robert F.; Edwards, Valerie J.; Felitti, Vincent J.; Dube, Shanta R.; Giles, Wayne H.

2007-01-01

Objective: To examine relationships between childhood autobiographical memory disturbance (CAMD) and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) which are defined as common forms of child maltreatment and related traumatic stressors. Methods: We use the ACE score (an integer count of eight different categories of ACEs) as a measure of cumulative exposure…

Childhood adversity impacts on brain subcortical structures relevant to depression.

PubMed

Frodl, Thomas; Janowitz, Deborah; Schmaal, Lianne; Tozzi, Leonardo; Dobrowolny, Henrik; Stein, Dan J; Veltman, Dick J; Wittfeld, Katharina; van Erp, Theo G M; Jahanshad, Neda; Block, Andrea; Hegenscheid, Katrin; Völzke, Henry; Lagopoulos, Jim; Hatton, Sean N; Hickie, Ian B; Frey, Eva Maria; Carballedo, Angela; Brooks, Samantha J; Vuletic, Daniella; Uhlmann, Anne; Veer, Ilya M; Walter, Henrik; Schnell, Knut; Grotegerd, Dominik; Arolt, Volker; Kugel, Harald; Schramm, Elisabeth; Konrad, Carsten; Zurowski, Bartosz; Baune, Bernhard T; van der Wee, Nic J A; van Tol, Marie-Jose; Penninx, Brenda W J H; Thompson, Paul M; Hibar, Derrek P; Dannlowski, Udo; Grabe, Hans J

2017-03-01

Childhood adversity plays an important role for development of major depressive disorder (MDD). There are differences in subcortical brain structures between patients with MDD and healthy controls, but the specific impact of childhood adversity on such structures in MDD remains unclear. Thus, aim of the present study was to investigate whether childhood adversity is associated with subcortical volumes and how it interacts with a diagnosis of MDD and sex. Within the ENIGMA-MDD network, nine university partner sites, which assessed childhood adversity and magnetic resonance imaging in patients with MDD and controls, took part in the current joint mega-analysis. In this largest effort world-wide to identify subcortical brain structure differences related to childhood adversity, 3036 participants were analyzed for subcortical brain volumes using FreeSurfer. A significant interaction was evident between childhood adversity, MDD diagnosis, sex, and region. Increased exposure to childhood adversity was associated with smaller caudate volumes in females independent of MDD. All subcategories of childhood adversity were negatively associated with caudate volumes in females - in particular emotional neglect and physical neglect (independently from age, ICV, imaging site and MDD diagnosis). There was no interaction effect between childhood adversity and MDD diagnosis on subcortical brain volumes. Childhood adversity is one of the contributors to brain structural abnormalities. It is associated with subcortical brain abnormalities that are relevant to psychiatric disorders such as depression. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Impact of early life adversity on EMG stress reactivity of the trapezius muscle

PubMed Central

Luijcks, Rosan; Vossen, Catherine J.; Roggeveen, Suzanne; van Os, Jim; Hermens, Hermie J.; Lousberg, Richel

2016-01-01

Abstract Human and animal research indicates that exposure to early life adversity increases stress sensitivity later in life. While behavioral markers of adversity-induced stress sensitivity have been suggested, physiological markers remain to be elucidated. It is known that trapezius muscle activity increases during stressful situations. The present study examined to what degree early life adverse events experienced during early childhood (0–11 years) and adolescence (12–17 years) moderate experimentally induced electromyographic (EMG) stress activity of the trapezius muscles, in an experimental setting. In a general population sample (n = 115), an anticipatory stress effect was generated by presenting a single unpredictable and uncontrollable electrical painful stimulus at t = 3 minutes. Subjects were unaware of the precise moment of stimulus delivery and its intensity level. Linear and nonlinear time courses in EMG activity were modeled using multilevel analysis. The study protocol included 2 experimental sessions (t = 0 and t = 6 months) allowing for examination of reliability. Results show that EMG stress reactivity during the stress paradigm was consistently stronger in people with higher levels of early life adverse events; early childhood adversity had a stronger moderating effect than adolescent adversity. The impact of early life adversity on EMG stress reactivity may represent a reliable facet that can be used in both clinical and nonclinical studies. PMID:27684800

Interactive effects of genetic polymorphisms and childhood adversity on brain morphologic changes in depression.

PubMed

Kim, Yong-Ku; Ham, Byung-Joo; Han, Kyu-Man

2018-03-10

The etiology of depression is characterized by the interplay of genetic and environmental factors and brain structural alteration. Childhood adversity is a major contributing factor in the development of depression. Interactions between childhood adversity and candidate genes for depression could affect brain morphology via the modulation of neurotrophic factors, serotonergic neurotransmission, or the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, and this pathway may explain the subsequent onset of depression. Childhood adversity is associated with structural changes in the hippocampus, amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and prefrontal cortex (PFC), as well as white matter tracts such as the corpus callosum, cingulum, and uncinate fasciculus. Childhood adversity showed an interaction with the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene Val66Met polymorphism, serotonin transporter-linked promoter region (5-HTTLPR), and FK506 binding protein 51 (FKBP5) gene rs1360780 in brain morphologic changes in patients with depression and in a non-clinical population. Individuals with the Met allele of BDNF Val66Met and a history of childhood adversity had reduced volume in the hippocampus and its subfields, amygdala, and PFC and thinner rostral ACC in a study of depressed patients and healthy controls. The S allele of 5-HTTLPR combined with exposure to childhood adversity or a poorer parenting environment was associated with a smaller hippocampal volume and subsequent onset of depression. The FKBP5 gene rs160780 had a significant interaction with childhood adversity in the white matter integrity of brain regions involved in emotion processing. This review identified that imaging genetic studies on childhood adversity may deepen our understanding on the neurobiological background of depression by scrutinizing complicated pathways of genetic factors, early psychosocial environments, and the accompanying morphologic changes in emotion-processing neural circuitry. Copyright

Interpersonal violence, early life adversity, and suicidal behavior in hypersexual men.

PubMed

Chatzittofis, Andreas; Savard, Josephine; Arver, Stefan; Öberg, Katarina Görts; Hallberg, Jonas; Nordström, Peter; Jokinen, Jussi

2017-06-01

Background and aims There are significant gaps in knowledge regarding the role of childhood adversity, interpersonal violence, and suicidal behavior in hypersexual disorder (HD). The aim of this study was to investigate interpersonal violence in hypersexual men compared with healthy volunteers and the experience of violence in relation to suicidal behavior. Methods This case-control study includes 67 male patients with HD and 40 healthy male volunteers. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire - Short Form (CTQ-SF) and the Karolinska Interpersonal Violence Scale (KIVS) were used for assessing early life adversity and interpersonal violence in childhood and in adult life. Suicidal behavior (attempts and ideation) was assessed with the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (version 6.0) and the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale - Self-rating. Results Hypersexual men reported more exposure to violence in childhood and more violent behavior as adults compared with healthy volunteers. Suicide attempters (n = 8, 12%) reported higher KIVS total score, more used violence as a child, more exposure to violence as an adult as well as higher score on CTQ-SF subscale measuring sexual abuse (SA) compared with hypersexual men without suicide attempt. Discussion Hypersexuality was associated with interpersonal violence with higher total scores in patients with a history of suicide attempt. The KIVS subscale exposure to interpersonal violence as a child was validated using the CTQ-SF but can be complemented with questions focusing on SA for full assessment of early life adversity. Conclusion Childhood adversity is an important factor in HD and interpersonal violence might be related to suicidal behavior in hypersexual men.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Hallucinations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whitfield, C.L.; Dube, S.R.; Felitti, V.J.; Anda, R.F.

2005-01-01

Objective:: Little information is available about the contribution of multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to the likelihood of reporting hallucinations. We used data from the ACE study to assess this relationship. Methods:: We conducted a survey about childhood abuse and household dysfunction while growing up, with questions about health…

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Arrest Patterns in a Sample of Sexual Offenders.

PubMed

Levenson, Jill S; Socia, Kelly M

2016-06-01

Developmental psychopathology theories suggest that childhood adversity can contribute to antisocial conduct and delinquent activities. The purpose of this study was to explore the influence of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) on arrest patterns in a sample of sexual offenders (N = 740). Higher ACE scores were associated with a variety of arrest outcomes, indicating that the accumulation of early trauma increased the likelihood of versatility and persistence of criminal behavior. Rapists of adults had higher ACE scores, lower levels of specialization, and higher levels of persistence than sex offenders with minor victims only. Child sexual abuse, emotional neglect, and domestic violence in the childhood home were significant predictors of a higher number of sex crime arrests. For measures of nonsexual arrests and criminal versatility, it was the household dysfunction factors-substance abuse, unmarried parents, and incarceration of a family member-that were predictive, suggesting that family dysfunction and a chaotic home environment contributed significantly to increased risk of general criminal behavior. Sex offenders inspire little sympathy in our society but may be among those most in need of trauma-informed models of treatment that recognize the influence of early adversity on maladaptive schema and self-regulation deficits related to criminal behavior. © The Author(s) 2015.

Adverse childhood experiences and risk of paternity in teen pregnancy.

PubMed

Anda, Robert F; Chapman, Daniel P; Felitti, Vincent J; Edwards, Valerie; Williamson, David F; Croft, Janet B; Giles, Wayne H

2002-07-01

Few studies have investigated risk factors that predispose males to be involved in teen pregnancies. To provide new information on such factors, we examined the relationships of eight common adverse childhood experiences to a male's risk of impregnating a teenager. We conducted a retrospective cohort study using questionnaire responses from 7399 men who visited a primary care clinic of a large health maintenance organization in California. Data included age of the youngest female ever impregnated; the man's own age at the time; his history of childhood emotional, physical, or sexual abuse; having a battered mother; parental separation or divorce; and having household members who were substance abusers, mentally ill, or criminals. Odds ratios (ORs) for the risk of involvement in a teen pregnancy were adjusted for age, race, and education. At least one adverse childhood experience was reported by 63% of participants, and 34% had at least two adverse childhood experiences; 19% of men had been involved in a teen pregnancy. Each adverse childhood experience was positively associated with impregnating a teenager, with ORs ranging from 1.2 (sexual abuse) to 1.8 (criminal in home). We found strong graded relationships (P <.001) between the number of adverse childhood experiences and the risk of involvement in a teen pregnancy for each of four birth cohorts during the last century. Compared with males with no adverse childhood experiences, a male with at least five adverse childhood experiences had an OR of 2.6 (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.0, 3.4) for impregnating a teenager. The magnitude of the ORs for the adverse childhood experiences was reduced 64-100% by adjustment for potential intermediate variables (age at first intercourse, number of sexual partners, having a sexually transmitted disease, and alcohol or drug abuse) that also exhibited a strong graded relationship to adverse childhood experiences. Adverse childhood experiences have an important relationship to

Population attributable fractions of psychopathology and suicidal behaviour associated with childhood adversities in Northern Ireland.

PubMed

McLafferty, Margaret; O'Neill, Siobhan; Murphy, Sam; Armour, Cherie; Bunting, Brendan

2018-03-01

Childhood adversities are strong predictors of psychopathology and suicidality. However, specific adversities are associated with different outcomes, with cross-national variations reported. The current study examined rates of adversities reported in Northern Ireland (NI), and associations between adverse childhood experiences and psychopathology and suicidal behaviour were explored. Data was obtained from the Northern Ireland Study of Health and Stress (NISHS), conducted as part of the World Mental Health (WMH) survey initiative (2004-2008); response rate 68.4% (n = 1,986). The on-line survey used, the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) to examine psychopathology and associated risk factors in the NI population. Prevalence rates of retrospectively reported childhood adversities were calculated, with gender and age variations explored. Females were more likely to experience sexual abuse. Individuals who grew up during the worst years of the civil conflict in NI experienced elevated levels of childhood adversities. Participants who endured childhood adversities were more likely to have mental health problems but variations in risk factors were found for different disorders. Parental mental illness was associated with all disorders however, with ORs ranging from 2.20 for mood disorders to 4.07 for anxiety disorders. Population attributable fractions (PAF) estimated the reduction in psychopathology and suicidal behaviour in the population if exposure to adverse childhood events had not occurred. The highest PAF values were revealed for parental mental illness and sexual abuse. The findings indicate that a substantial proportion of psychopathology and suicide risk in NI are attributable to childhood adversities, providing support for early intervention and prevention initiatives. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adverse childhood experiences: towards a clear conceptual meaning.

PubMed

Kalmakis, Karen A; Chandler, Genevieve E

2014-07-01

To report an analysis of the concept of adverse childhood experiences. Adverse childhood experiences have been associated with negative physical and psychological health outcomes, but this phenomenon lacks the clear, consistent meaning necessary for use in nursing research, theory development and practice. Concept clarification. The literature search was not limited a priori by date and included publications with abstracts in English from PubMed, CINAHL, PsychINFO and Social Abstracts. The search retrieved 128 articles published from 1970-2013. The search term 'adverse childhood experiences' was used, with similar terms permitted. A snowball approach was used to expand the search to relevant literature. The articles were read and analysed following Norris's five steps for concept clarification to refine, elucidate and operationally define the concept and the context in which it occurred. Adverse childhood experiences were defined operationally as childhood events, varying in severity and often chronic, occurring in a child's family or social environment that cause harm or distress, thereby disrupting the child's physical or psychological health and development. This concept clarification should raise awareness and understanding of the diverse nature and shared characteristics of adverse childhood experiences that are believed to influence the health of individuals as they age. This clarified concept will help expand research on health consequences of adverse childhood experiences and interventions to improve health. We recommend promoting a model of primary care that pays attention to the social and familial influences on the health of individuals worldwide. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Adversity and psychosis: a 10-year prospective study investigating synergism between early and recent adversity in psychosis.

PubMed

Lataster, J; Myin-Germeys, I; Lieb, R; Wittchen, H-U; van Os, J

2012-05-01

Recent studies have suggested that early adverse events, such as childhood trauma, may promote enduring liability for psychosis whereas more recent adverse events may act as precipitants. Examination of these environmental dynamics, however, requires prospective studies in large samples. This study examines whether the association between recent adverse events and psychosis is moderated by exposure to early adversity. A random regional representative population sample of 3021 adolescents and young adults in Munich, Germany, was assessed three times over a period of up to 10 years, collecting information on sociodemographic factors, environmental exposures, and measures of psychopathology and associated clinical relevance. Evidence of statistical non-additivity between early adversity (two levels) and more recent adversity (four levels) was assessed in models of psychotic symptoms. Analyses were a priori corrected for age, gender, cannabis use, and urbanicity. Early and recent adversity were associated with each other (RR = 1.32, 95% CI 1.06-1.66; P = 0.014) and displayed statistical non-additivity at the highest level of exposure to recent adversity (χ(2) = 4.59; P = 0.032). The findings suggest that early adversity may impact on later expression of psychosis either by increasing exposure to later adversity and/or by rendering individuals more sensitive to later adversity if it is severe. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Genetic and epigenetic associations of MAOA and NR3C1 with depression and childhood adversities.

PubMed

Melas, Philippe A; Wei, Yabin; Wong, Chloe C Y; Sjöholm, Louise K; Åberg, Elin; Mill, Jonathan; Schalling, Martin; Forsell, Yvonne; Lavebratt, Catharina

2013-08-01

Monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) harbours a polymorphic upstream variable-number tandem repeat (u-VNTR). The MAOA-L allele of the u-VNTR leads to decreased gene expression levels in vitro and has been found to increase the risk of conduct disorder in males with childhood adversities. Early-life adversities have been associated with hypermethylation of the glucocorticoid receptor (NR3C1). In this study, we first performed a genetic association analysis of the MAOA u-VNTR using individuals with depression (n = 392) and controls (n = 1276). Next, DNA methylation analyses of MAOA and NR3C1 were performed using saliva samples of depressed and control subgroups. Adult MAOA-L females with childhood adversities were found to have a higher risk of developing depression (p = 0.006) and overall MAOA methylation levels were decreased in depressed females compared to controls (mean depressed, 42% vs. mean controls, 44%; p = 0.04). One specific childhood adversity [early parental death (EPD)] was associated with hypermethylation of NR3C1 close to an NGFI-A binding site (mean EPD, 19% vs. mean non-EPD, 14%; p = 0.005). Regression analysis indicated that this association may be mediated by the MAOA-L allele (adjusted R² = 0.24, ANOVA: F = 23.48, p < 0.001). Conclusively: (1) depression in females may result from a gene × childhood-adversity interaction and/or a dysregulated epigenetic programming of MAOA; (2) childhood-adversity subtypes may differentially impact DNA methylation at NR3C1; (3) baseline MAOA-genotypic variations may affect the extent of NR3C1 methylation.

Modifiable Resilience Factors to Childhood Adversity for Clinical Pediatric Practice.

PubMed

Traub, Flora; Boynton-Jarrett, Renée

2017-05-01

Childhood adversity is highly prevalent and associated with risk for poor health outcomes in childhood and throughout the life course. Empirical literature on resilience over the past 40 years has identified protective factors for traumatized children that improve health outcomes. Despite these empirical investigations of resilience, there is limited integration of these findings into proactive strategies to mitigate the impact of adverse childhood experiences. We review the state of resilience research, with a focus on recent work, as it pertains to protecting children from the health impacts of early adversity. We identify and document evidence for 5 modifiable resilience factors to improve children's long- and short-term health outcomes, including fostering positive appraisal styles in children and bolstering executive function, improving parenting, supporting maternal mental health, teaching parents the importance of good self-care skills and consistent household routines, and offering anticipatory guidance about the impact of trauma on children. We conclude with 10 recommendations for pediatric practitioners to leverage the identified modifiable resilience factors to help children withstand, adapt to, and recover from adversity. Taken together, these recommendations constitute a blueprint for a trauma-informed medical home. Building resilience in pediatric patients offers an opportunity to improve the health and well-being of the next generation, enhance national productivity, and reduce spending on health care for chronic diseases. Copyright © 2017 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Adverse childhood experiences and associations with health-harming behaviours in young adults: surveys in eight eastern European countries.

PubMed

Bellis, Mark A; Hughes, Karen; Leckenby, Nicola; Jones, Lisa; Baban, Adriana; Kachaeva, Margarita; Povilaitis, Robertas; Pudule, Iveta; Qirjako, Gentiana; Ulukol, Betül; Raleva, Marija; Terzic, Natasa

2014-09-01

To evaluate the association between adverse childhood experiences - e.g. abuse, neglect, domestic violence and parental separation, substance use, mental illness or incarceration - and the health of young adults in eight eastern European countries. Between 2010 and 2013, adverse childhood experience surveys were undertaken in Albania, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Romania, the Russian Federation, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkey. There were 10,696 respondents - 59.7% female - aged 18-25 years. Multivariate modelling was used to investigate the relationships between adverse childhood experiences and health-harming behaviours in early adulthood including substance use, physical inactivity and attempted suicide. Over half of the respondents reported at least one adverse childhood experience. Having one adverse childhood experience increased the probability of having other adverse childhood experiences. The number of adverse childhood experiences was positively correlated with subsequent reports of health-harming behaviours. Compared with those who reported no adverse experiences, respondents who reported at least four adverse childhood experiences were at significantly increased risk of many health-harming behaviours, with odds ratios varying from 1.68 (95% confidence interval, CI: 1.32-2.15) - for physical inactivity - to 48.53 (95% CI: 31.98-76.65) - for attempted suicide. Modelling indicated that prevention of adverse childhood experiences would substantially reduce the occurrence of many health-harming behaviours within the study population. Our results indicate that individuals who do not develop health-harming behaviours are more likely to have experienced safe, nurturing childhoods. Evidence-based programmes to improve parenting and support child development need large-scale deployment in eastern European.

Adverse Childhood Experiences in a Post-bariatric Surgery Psychiatric Inpatient Sample.

PubMed

Fink, Kathryn; Ross, Colin A

2017-12-01

Sixty-three inpatients in a psychiatric hospital who had previously undergone bariatric surgery were interviewed by the hospital dietitian. The purpose of the study was to determine the frequency of adverse childhood experiences in this population. Participants completed the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Scale. The average score on the ACE was 5.4 (3.3); 76% of participants reported childhood emotional neglect, 70% childhood verbal abuse, and 64% childhood sexual abuse; only two participants reported no adverse childhood experiences. The participants in the study reported high levels of adverse childhood experiences compared to the general population, which is consistent with prior literature on rates of childhood trauma in post-bariatric surgery patients. The role of adverse childhood experiences in post-bariatric surgery adaptation should be investigated in future research, including in prospective studies.

Childhood adversities and adult psychopathology in the WHO World Mental Health Surveys.

PubMed

Kessler, Ronald C; McLaughlin, Katie A; Green, Jennifer Greif; Gruber, Michael J; Sampson, Nancy A; Zaslavsky, Alan M; Aguilar-Gaxiola, Sergio; Alhamzawi, Ali Obaid; Alonso, Jordi; Angermeyer, Matthias; Benjet, Corina; Bromet, Evelyn; Chatterji, Somnath; de Girolamo, Giovanni; Demyttenaere, Koen; Fayyad, John; Florescu, Silvia; Gal, Gilad; Gureje, Oye; Haro, Josep Maria; Hu, Chi-Yi; Karam, Elie G; Kawakami, Norito; Lee, Sing; Lépine, Jean-Pierre; Ormel, Johan; Posada-Villa, José; Sagar, Rajesh; Tsang, Adley; Ustün, T Bedirhan; Vassilev, Svetlozar; Viana, Maria Carmen; Williams, David R

2010-11-01

Although significant associations of childhood adversities with adult mental disorders are widely documented, most studies focus on single childhood adversities predicting single disorders. To examine joint associations of 12 childhood adversities with first onset of 20 DSM-IV disorders in World Mental Health (WMH) Surveys in 21 countries. Nationally or regionally representative surveys of 51 945 adults assessed childhood adversities and lifetime DSM-IV disorders with the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI). Childhood adversities were highly prevalent and interrelated. Childhood adversities associated with maladaptive family functioning (e.g. parental mental illness, child abuse, neglect) were the strongest predictors of disorders. Co-occurring childhood adversities associated with maladaptive family functioning had significant subadditive predictive associations and little specificity across disorders. Childhood adversities account for 29.8% of all disorders across countries. Childhood adversities have strong associations with all classes of disorders at all life-course stages in all groups of WMH countries. Long-term associations imply the existence of as-yet undetermined mediators.

Interpersonal violence, early life adversity, and suicidal behavior in hypersexual men

PubMed Central

Chatzittofis, Andreas; Savard, Josephine; Arver, Stefan; Öberg, Katarina Görts; Hallberg, Jonas; Nordström, Peter; Jokinen, Jussi

2017-01-01

Background and aims There are significant gaps in knowledge regarding the role of childhood adversity, interpersonal violence, and suicidal behavior in hypersexual disorder (HD). The aim of this study was to investigate interpersonal violence in hypersexual men compared with healthy volunteers and the experience of violence in relation to suicidal behavior. Methods This case–control study includes 67 male patients with HD and 40 healthy male volunteers. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire – Short Form (CTQ-SF) and the Karolinska Interpersonal Violence Scale (KIVS) were used for assessing early life adversity and interpersonal violence in childhood and in adult life. Suicidal behavior (attempts and ideation) was assessed with the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (version 6.0) and the Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale – Self-rating. Results Hypersexual men reported more exposure to violence in childhood and more violent behavior as adults compared with healthy volunteers. Suicide attempters (n = 8, 12%) reported higher KIVS total score, more used violence as a child, more exposure to violence as an adult as well as higher score on CTQ-SF subscale measuring sexual abuse (SA) compared with hypersexual men without suicide attempt. Discussion Hypersexuality was associated with interpersonal violence with higher total scores in patients with a history of suicide attempt. The KIVS subscale exposure to interpersonal violence as a child was validated using the CTQ-SF but can be complemented with questions focusing on SA for full assessment of early life adversity. Conclusion Childhood adversity is an important factor in HD and interpersonal violence might be related to suicidal behavior in hypersexual men. PMID:28467102

Adverse childhood experiences and associations with health-harming behaviours in young adults: surveys in eight eastern European countries

PubMed Central

Hughes, Karen; Leckenby, Nicola; Jones, Lisa; Baban, Adriana; Kachaeva, Margarita; Povilaitis, Robertas; Pudule, Iveta; Qirjako, Gentiana; Ulukol, Betül; Raleva, Marija; Terzic, Natasa

2014-01-01

Abstract Objective To evaluate the association between adverse childhood experiences – e.g. abuse, neglect, domestic violence and parental separation, substance use, mental illness or incarceration – and the health of young adults in eight eastern European countries. Methods Between 2010 and 2013, adverse childhood experience surveys were undertaken in Albania, Latvia, Lithuania, Montenegro, Romania, the Russian Federation, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkey. There were 10 696 respondents – 59.7% female – aged 18–25 years. Multivariate modelling was used to investigate the relationships between adverse childhood experiences and health-harming behaviours in early adulthood including substance use, physical inactivity and attempted suicide. Findings Over half of the respondents reported at least one adverse childhood experience. Having one adverse childhood experience increased the probability of having other adverse childhood experiences. The number of adverse childhood experiences was positively correlated with subsequent reports of health-harming behaviours. Compared with those who reported no adverse experiences, respondents who reported at least four adverse childhood experiences were at significantly increased risk of many health-harming behaviours, with odds ratios varying from 1.68 (95% confidence interval, CI: 1.32–2.15) – for physical inactivity – to 48.53 (95% CI: 31.98–76.65) – for attempted suicide. Modelling indicated that prevention of adverse childhood experiences would substantially reduce the occurrence of many health-harming behaviours within the study population. Conclusion Our results indicate that individuals who do not develop health-harming behaviours are more likely to have experienced safe, nurturing childhoods. Evidence-based programmes to improve parenting and support child development need large-scale deployment in eastern European. PMID:25378755

Childhood social adversity and risk of depressive symptoms in adolescence in a US national sample.

PubMed

Björkenstam, Emma; Pebley, Anne R; Burström, Bo; Kosidou, Kyriaki

2017-04-01

Childhood social adversity has been associated with an increased risk of depression and other psychiatric disorders in adolescence and early adulthood. However, the role of timing and accumulation of adversities has not yet been established in longitudinal studies. We examined the association between childhood adversities and adolescent depressive symptoms, and the impact of timing and accumulation of adversity. Longitudinal data were obtained from the Child Development Supplement to the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (n=2223), a nationally representative survey of US families that incorporates data from parents and their children. Negative binomial regression analysis was used to estimate effects of childhood social adversity on adolescent depressive symptoms, presented as Incidence Rate Ratios with 95% confidence intervals. Children exposed to social adversity reported higher levels of adolescent depressive symptoms captured by two depression scales. Single-parent household and residential instability were particularly associated with depressive symptoms. A positive relationship was found between cumulative adversity and the risk of adolescent depression. The timing of exposure appeared to have little effect on the risk of adolescent depressive symptoms. The structure of the data implies that alternative causal pathways cannot be fully discounted. The self- or parent-reported data is subject to recall bias. Our findings support the long-term negative impact of childhood adversity on adolescent depressive symptoms, regardless of when in childhood the adversity occurs. Policies and interventions to reduce adolescent depressive symptoms need to consider the social background of the family as an important risk or protective factor. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Childhood adversities and clinical symptomatology in first-episode psychosis.

PubMed

Lindgren, Maija; Mäntylä, Teemu; Rikandi, Eva; Torniainen-Holm, Minna; Morales-Muñoz, Isabel; Kieseppä, Tuula; Mantere, Outi; Suvisaari, Jaana

2017-12-01

In addition to severe traumatic experiences, milder, more common childhood adversities reflecting psychosocial burden may also be common in people with psychotic disorders and have an effect on symptomatology and functioning. We explored eleven negative childhood experiences and their influence on clinical symptoms among young adults with first-episode psychosis (FEP, n = 75) and matched population controls (n = 51). Individuals with FEP reported more adversities than controls. Specifically serious conflicts within the family, bullying at school, maternal mental health problems, and one's own and parents' serious illness during childhood were experienced by the patients more often than by controls. In the FEP group, the severity of adversity was associated with increased anxiety, manic, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms, but not with the severity of positive psychotic symptoms. Adversity produced a more pronounced effect on symptoms in male patients than in female patients. To conclude, in line with earlier studies of more chronic psychosis, a majority of the participants with FEP reported exposure to childhood adversities, with the FEP group reporting more adversities than controls. High levels of mood and anxiety symptoms in patients with FEP may be related to cumulative exposure to childhood adversities. This should be taken into account in the treatment for FEP. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Adverse Childhood Experiences Predict Alcohol Consumption Patterns Among Kenyan Mothers.

PubMed

Goodman, Michael L; Grouls, Astrid; Chen, Catherine X; Keiser, Philip H; Gitari, Stanley

2017-04-16

We analyze whether adverse childhood experiences predict weekly alcohol consumption patterns of Kenyan mothers and their partners. Randomly selected respondents (n = 1,976) were asked about adverse childhood experiences and alcohol consumption patterns for themselves and their partners. Fixed effect models were used to determine odds of reporting weekly alcohol consumption and the number of beverages typically consumed, controlling for wealth, age, education, and partner alcohol consumption. Cumulative adverse childhood experiences predicted higher odds of weekly alcohol consumption of the respondent and her partner. Childhood exposure to physical abuse, emotional neglect, and mental illness in the household significantly increased odds of weekly alcohol consumption by the respondent. More drinks consumed per typical session were higher among respondents with more cumulative adversities. Physical and emotional abuse significantly predicted number of drinks typically consumed by the respondent. To our knowledge, this is the first study to explore and find associations between adverse childhood experiences and alcohol consumption in Kenya. Consistent with high-income settings, exposure to childhood adversities predicted greater alcohol consumption among Kenyan women.

Investments for Future: Early Childhood Development and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kartal, Hulya

2007-01-01

Investments relevant to the first years of life are directly connected to the future of societies. It can be argued that investments for early childhood development and education are one of the best ways of decreasing social inequality caused by adverse environments which hinder development in early ages and tackling poverty by reducing the rate…

Adverse Housing Conditions and Early-Onset Delinquency.

PubMed

Jackson, Dylan B; Newsome, Jamie; Lynch, Kellie R

2017-09-01

Housing constitutes an important health resource for children. Research has revealed that, when housing conditions are unfavorable, they can interfere with child health, academic performance, and cognition. Little to no research, however, has considered whether adverse housing conditions and early-onset delinquency are significantly associated with one another. This study explores the associations between structural and non-structural housing conditions and delinquent involvement during childhood. Data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) were employed in this study. Each adverse housing condition was significantly associated with early-onset delinquency. Even so, disarray and deterioration were only significantly linked to early delinquent involvement in the presence of health/safety hazards. The predicted probability of early-onset delinquency among children exposed to housing risks in the presence of health/safety hazards was nearly three times as large as the predicted probability of early-onset delinquency among children exposed only to disarray and/or deterioration, and nearly four times as large as the predicted probability of early-onset delinquency among children exposed to none of the adverse housing conditions. The findings suggest that minimizing housing-related health/safety hazards among at-risk subsets of the population may help to alleviate other important public health concerns-particularly early-onset delinquency. Addressing household health/safety hazards may represent a fruitful avenue for public health programs aimed at the prevention of early-onset delinquency. © Society for Community Research and Action 2017.

Adverse childhood experiences of low-income urban youth.

PubMed

Wade, Roy; Shea, Judy A; Rubin, David; Wood, Joanne

2014-07-01

Current assessments of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) may not adequately encompass the breadth of adversity to which low-income urban children are exposed. The purpose of this study was to identify and characterize the range of adverse childhood experiences faced by young adults who grew up in a low-income urban area. Focus groups were conducted with young adults who grew up in low-income Philadelphia neighborhoods. Using the nominal group technique, participants generated a list of adverse childhood experiences and then identified the 5 most stressful experiences on the group list. The most stressful experiences identified by participants were grouped into a ranked list of domains and subdomains. Participants identified a range of experiences, grouped into 10 domains: family relationships, community stressors, personal victimization, economic hardship, peer relationships, discrimination, school, health, child welfare/juvenile justice, and media/technology. Included in these domains were many but not all of the experiences from the initial ACEs studies; parental divorce/separation and mental illness were absent. Additional experiences not included in the initial ACEs but endorsed by our participants included single-parent homes; exposure to violence, adult themes, and criminal behavior; personal victimization; bullying; economic hardship; and discrimination. Gathering youth perspectives on childhood adversity broadens our understanding of the experience of stress and trauma in childhood. Future work is needed to determine the significance of this broader set of adverse experiences in predisposing children to poor health outcomes as adults. Copyright © 2014 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Increased alpha-Amylase Response to an Acute Psychosocial Stress Challenge in Healthy Adults with Childhood Adversity

PubMed Central

Kuras, Yuliya I.; McInnis, Christine M.; Thoma, Myriam V.; Chen, Xuejie; Hanlin, Luke; Gianferante, Danielle; Rohleder, Nicolas

2017-01-01

Childhood adversity is highly prevalent and linked to lasting psychological and physiological consequences. A potential mechanism for negative health outcomes is altered stress reactivity. While previous research has addressed associations of childhood adversity with stress system reactivity, sympathetic nervous system (SNS) stress reactivity is understudied. We therefore set out here to examing salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) reactivity in relation with childhood adversity. Forty-one healthy adult subjects (n=24 male; n=17 female) aged 18-34 years underwent the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Saliva for measurement of sAA was collected at three time points; before the TSST, immediately after, and 10 minutes post-TSST. We found that those with childhood trauma had a higher overall sAA response to the TSST, as seen in a repeated measures ANOVA (CTQ by time interaction: F(1.8,71.5)=6.46, p=.01) and an independent samples t-test indicating higher sAA baseline to peak response (t=3.22, p=.003). There was also a positive correlation between sAA reactivity and the CTQ subscales of childhood physical abuse (r=.46, p=.005) and emotional abuse (r=.37, p=.024). Healthy adults with low-to-moderate childhood adversity had a heightened sAA response immediately following the stressor. Higher SNS reactivity could be a link to negative health outcomes in adults with early adversity. Future research should address whether altered sAA reactivity is predictive of negative health outcomes in those with childhood adversity. PMID:27577885

Advancing Early Childhood Development: from Science to Scale 1

PubMed Central

Black, Maureen M; Walker, Susan P; Fernald, Lia C H; Andersen, Christopher T; DiGirolamo, Ann M; Lu, Chunling; McCoy, Dana C; Fink, Günther; Shawar, Yusra R; Shiffman, Prof Jeremy; Devercelli, Amanda E; Wodon, Quentin T; Vargas-Barón, Emily; Grantham-McGregor, Sally

2018-01-01

Early childhood development programmes vary in coordination and quality, with inadequate and inequitable access, especially for children younger than 3 years. New estimates, based on proxy measures of stunting and poverty, indicate that 250 million children (43%) younger than 5 years in low-income and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their developmental potential. There is therefore an urgent need to increase multisectoral coverage of quality programming that incorporates health, nutrition, security and safety, responsive caregiving, and early learning. Equitable early childhood policies and programmes are crucial for meeting Sustainable Development Goals, and for children to develop the intellectual skills, creativity, and wellbeing required to become healthy and productive adults. In this paper, the first in a three part Series on early childhood development, we examine recent scientific progress and global commitments to early childhood development. Research, programmes, and policies have advanced substantially since 2000, with new neuroscientific evidence linking early adversity and nurturing care with brain development and function throughout the life course. PMID:27717614

Childhood adversity and insomnia in adolescence.

PubMed

Wang, Yan; Raffeld, Miriam R; Slopen, Natalie; Hale, Lauren; Dunn, Erin C

2016-05-01

The study aims to evaluate the association between exposure to childhood adversity and insomnia, with an emphasis on the role of adversity type, timing, and accumulation (i.e., the number of specific types of adversities the child reported being exposed to). Our analytic sample comprised 9582 adolescents from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A), a nationally representative population-based sample. We examined the association between 18 different types of retrospectively reported adversities (capturing interpersonal violence, accidents and injuries, social network or witnessing events, and other adverse events) and risk of self-reported past-year insomnia. We also examined whether the age at first exposure to adversity was associated with the risk of insomnia, and whether exposure to a greater number of different types of adversities (ie, accumulation) conferred an elevated risk of insomnia. In addition, we performed a sensitivity analysis excluding adolescents with a past-year diagnosis of major depression, dysthymia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or generalized anxiety disorder. Almost one-third of adolescents reported insomnia, with a higher prevalence among girls and those from racial/ethnic minority groups. Adolescents exposed to at least one childhood adversity of any type (59.41%) were more likely than their nonexposed peers to experience insomnia (across adversities, prevalence ratios (PRs) ranged from 1.31 to 1.89). Risk of insomnia differed based on the age at first exposure to adversity as well as the type of adversity. Adolescents exposed to a greater number of different types of adversities had a higher risk of insomnia compared to those experiencing fewer adversities. These results were similar, by and large, to those obtained after excluding adolescents with at least one of the four past-year psychiatric disorders. Exposure to adversity confers an elevated risk of insomnia. This association varied by type

Adverse and adaptive childhood experiences are associated with parental reflective functioning in mothers with substance use disorder.

PubMed

Håkansson, Ulrika; Watten, Reidulf; Söderström, Kerstin; Skårderud, Finn; Øie, Merete Glenne

2018-07-01

Mothers with a substance use disorder (SUD) are at risk for maladaptive parenting practices, and have heightened likelihood of having experienced childhood adversity themselves. In addition, parental reflective functioning (PRF), a capacity underlying sensitive caregiving, is often low in mothers with SUD. This study examines the relationship between PRF and aversive (emotional, physical, sexual abuse and neglect) and adaptive (safety and competence) experiences, in different developmental phases (early childhood, latency, and adolescence) in mothers with a SUD. A sample of 43 mothers with small children were interviewed with the Parental Developmental Interview to assess PRF, and they completed the Traumatic Antecedents Questionnaire regarding aversive and adaptive experiences. In addition, we used the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist-10 to control for mental health status and a battery of neuropsychological tests to control for executive functions. Results indicated that adaptive experiences in early childhood were positively related to PRF, and that experience of emotional abuse was negatively related to PRF. When separating the group of mothers in two sub-groups based on PRF level, results showed that mothers with negative to low PRF had significantly more experiences of adversities in early childhood and latency, and significantly less adaptive experiences in early childhood, latency and adolescence, compared to mothers with moderate to high PRF. In addition, mothers with adequate to high PRF reported experiencing significantly more types of adaptive experiences, and significantly less adversities compared to mothers with negative to low PRF. Results are discussed in relation to developmental trauma, resilience, epistemic trust and mistrust. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES AND REPEAT INDUCED ABORTION

PubMed Central

BLEIL, Maria E.; ADLER, Nancy E.; PASCH, Lauri A.; STERNFELD, Barbara; REIJO-PERA, Renee A.; CEDARS, Marcelle I.

2010-01-01

Objective To characterize the backgrounds of women who have repeat abortions. Study Design In a cross-sectional study of 259 women (M=35.2±5.6 years), the relation between adverse experiences in childhood and risk of having 2+ abortions versus 0 or 1 abortion was examined. Self-reported adverse events occurring between ages 0-12 were summed. Results Independent of confounding factors, women who experienced more abuse, personal safety, and total adverse events in childhood were more likely to have 2+ versus 0 abortions (OR=2.56, 95% CI=1.15-5.71; OR=2.74, 95% CI=1.29-5.82; OR=1.59, 95% CI=1.21-2.09) and versus 1 abortion (OR=5.83, 95% CI=1.71-19.89; OR=2.23, 95% CI=1.03-4.81; OR=1.37, 95% CI=1.04-1.81). Women who experienced more family disruption events in childhood were more likely to have 2+ versus 0 abortions (OR=1.75, 95% CI=1.14-2.69) but not versus 1 abortion (OR=1.16, 95% CI=0.79-1.70). Conclusions Women who have repeat abortions are more likely to have experienced childhood adversity than those having 0 or 1 abortion. PMID:21074137

Measuring Childhood Adversity in Life Course Cardiovascular Research: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Appleton, Allison A; Holdsworth, Elizabeth; Ryan, Margaret; Tracy, Melissa

2017-05-01

Identifying the life course health effects of childhood adversity is a burgeoning area of research, particularly in relation to cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, adversity measurement varies widely across studies, which may hamper our ability to make comparisons across studies and identify mechanisms linking adversity to CVD. The purposes of this review are to summarize adversity measurement approaches in the context of CVD, identify gaps, and make recommendations for future research. PubMed and PsycINFO searches were conducted through June 2016. Studies were selected if CVD end point or predisease risk markers were investigated in association with a measure of childhood adversity. Forty-three studies were reviewed. A meta-analysis was not conducted because of the variation in exposures and outcomes assessed. Adversity measurement was heterogeneous across studies. Metrics included different sets of adverse events, relational factors, and socioeconomic indicators. Thirty-seven percent measured childhood adversity prospectively, 23% examined a CVD end point, and 77% treated adversity as an unweighted summary score. Despite the heterogeneity in measurement, most studies found a positive association between childhood adversity and CVD risk, and the association seems to be dose-response. The literature on childhood adversity and CVD would benefit from improving consistency of measurement, using weighted adversity composites, modeling adversity trajectories over time, and considering socioeconomic status as an antecedent factor instead of a component part of an adversity score. We suggest conceptual and analytic strategies to enhance, refine, and replicate the observed association between childhood adversity and CVD risk.

Igniting the Policy Conversation: Bringing a Trauma-Informed Approach to Early Childhood System Building

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cohen, Julie; Oser, Cindy; Quigley, Kelsey

2013-01-01

The issue of early childhood trauma is becoming more prominent in early childhood policy discussions, driven by a growing recognition of the potentially devastating impacts of trauma and violence on infants, toddlers, and families. This article provides facts about the impacts of trauma and other adverse early experiences on child health and…

Associations among oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) DNA methylation in adulthood, exposure to early life adversity, and childhood trajectories of anxiousness.

PubMed

Gouin, J P; Zhou, Q Q; Booij, L; Boivin, M; Côté, S M; Hébert, M; Ouellet-Morin, I; Szyf, M; Tremblay, R E; Turecki, G; Vitaro, F

2017-08-07

Recent models propose deoxyribonucleic acid methylation of key neuro-regulatory genes as a molecular mechanism underlying the increased risk of mental disorder associated with early life adversity (ELA). The goal of this study was to examine the association of ELA with oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) methylation among young adults. Drawing from a 21-year longitudinal cohort, we compared adulthood OXTR methylation frequency of 46 adults (23 males and 23 females) selected for high or low ELA exposure based on childhood socioeconomic status and exposure to physical and sexual abuse during childhood and adolescence. Associations between OXTR methylation and teacher-rated childhood trajectories of anxiousness were also assessed. ELA exposure was associated with one significant CpG site in the first intron among females, but not among males. Similarly, childhood trajectories of anxiousness were related to one significant CpG site within the promoter region among females, but not among males. This study suggests that females might be more sensitive to the impact of ELA on OXTR methylation than males.

Increased alpha-amylase response to an acute psychosocial stress challenge in healthy adults with childhood adversity.

PubMed

Kuras, Yuliya I; McInnis, Christine M; Thoma, Myriam V; Chen, Xuejie; Hanlin, Luke; Gianferante, Danielle; Rohleder, Nicolas

2017-01-01

Childhood adversity is highly prevalent and linked to lasting psychological and physiological consequences. A potential mechanism for negative health outcomes is altered stress reactivity. While previous research has addressed associations of childhood adversity with stress system reactivity, sympathetic nervous system (SNS) stress reactivity is understudied. We therefore set out here to examining salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) reactivity in relation with childhood adversity. Forty-one healthy adult subjects (n = 24 male; n = 17 female) aged 18-34 years underwent the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Saliva for measurement of sAA was collected at three time points; before the TSST, immediately after, and 10 min post-TSST. We found that those with childhood trauma had a higher overall sAA response to the TSST, as seen in a repeated measures ANOVA (CTQ by time interaction: F(1.8,71.5) = 6.46, p = .01) and an independent samples t-test indicating higher sAA baseline to peak response (t = 3.22, p = .003). There was also a positive correlation between sAA reactivity and the CTQ subscales of childhood physical abuse (r = .46, p = .005) and emotional abuse (r = .37, p = .024). Healthy adults with low-to-moderate childhood adversity had a heightened sAA response immediately following the stressor. Higher SNS reactivity could be a link to negative health outcomes in adults with early adversity. Future research should address whether altered sAA reactivity is predictive of negative health outcomes in those with childhood adversity. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Role of Maternal Adverse Childhood Experiences and Race in Intergenerational High-Risk Smoking Behaviors

PubMed Central

Pear, Veronica A.; Petito, Lucia C.

2017-01-01

Abstract Introduction: A history of adversity in childhood is associated with cigarette smoking in adulthood, but there is less evidence for prenatal and next-generation offspring smoking. We investigated the association between maternal history of childhood adversity, pregnancy smoking, and early initiation of smoking in offspring, overall and by maternal race/ethnicity. Methods: Data on maternal childhood exposure to physical abuse, household alcohol abuse, and household mental illness, prenatal smoking behaviors, and offspring age of smoking initiation were analyzed from the US National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79, n = 2999 mothers) and the NLSY79 Children and Young Adults Survey (NLSYCYA, n = 6596 children). Adjusted risk ratios were estimated using log-linear regression models. We assessed multiplicative interaction by race/ethnicity for all associations and a three-way interaction by maternal exposure to adversity and race/ethnicity for the association between prenatal and child smoking. Results: Maternal exposure to childhood physical abuse was significantly associated with 39% and 20% increased risks of prenatal smoking and child smoking, respectively. Household alcohol abuse was associated with significantly increased risks of 20% for prenatal smoking and 17% for child smoking. The prenatal smoking–child smoking relationship was modified by maternal exposure to household alcohol abuse and race. There were increased risks for Hispanic and white/other mothers as compared to the lowest risk group: black mothers who did not experience childhood household alcohol abuse. Conclusions: Mothers in this national sample who experienced adversity in childhood are more likely to smoke during pregnancy and their offspring are more likely to initiate smoking before age 18. Findings varied by type of adversity and race/ethnicity. Implications: These findings support the importance of a life-course approach to understanding prenatal and intergenerational

Exploring the Relationship Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Hope.

PubMed

Baxter, Michael A; Hemming, Eden J; McIntosh, Heather C; Hellman, Chan M

2017-01-01

To explore the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and hope, a convenience sample of caregivers bringing in children for medical investigation of child abuse at a regional child advocacy center were surveyed for adverse childhood experiences and dispositional hope. Hope in this sample had a significant negative correlation to the adverse childhood experiences subscale "abuse" (r = -.19; p < .05). The relationship between hope and the other adverse childhood experiences subscales "neglect" (r = -.14) and "dysfunctional family" (r = -.16) was not statistically significant. An analysis of variance was performed to determine if caregivers who have experienced both sexual and physical abuse (M = 29.67; SD = 15.96) have lower hope scores compared to those caregivers who have experienced neither physical nor sexual abuse (M = 42.64; SD = 18.44). This analysis (F (1, 84) = 5.28; p < 0.05) showed that caregivers who experienced both physical and sexual abuse scored significantly lower on hope compared to their counterparts who experienced no adverse events, with an estimated effect size of moderate strength (d = 0.70). Higher adverse childhood experiences scores are associated with lower hope. This result was especially true for those adult caregivers who reported experiencing both physical and sexual abuse when compared to adults who did not experience either form of child trauma. While the empirical literature continues to demonstrate the negative consequences of adverse childhood experiences across the life span, hope offers a compelling new line of inquiry in child maltreatment research especially for studies targeting prevention or intervention.

Childhood Adversity, Religion, and Change in Adult Mental Health.

PubMed

Jung, Jong Hyun

2018-02-01

Research indicates that childhood adversity is associated with poor mental health in adulthood. The purpose of this study is to examine whether the deleterious long-term effects of childhood adversity on adult mental health are reduced for individuals who are involved in religious practices. Using longitudinal data from a representative sample of American adults ( N = 1,635), I find that religious salience and spirituality buffer the noxious effects of childhood abuse on change in positive affect over time. By contrast, these stress-buffering properties of religion fail to emerge when negative affect serves as the outcome measure. These results underscore the importance of religion as a countervailing mechanism that blunts the negative impact of childhood abuse on adult mental health over time. I discuss the theoretical implications of these findings for views about religion, childhood adversity, and mental health.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Suicide Attempts: The Mediating Influence of Personality Development and Problem Behaviors.

PubMed

Perez, Nicholas M; Jennings, Wesley G; Piquero, Alex R; Baglivio, Michael T

2016-08-01

Adverse childhood experiences, comprised of forms of maltreatment and certain dysfunctional household environments, can affect the development of a child in a variety of different ways. This multitude of developmental changes may subsequently produce compounding harmful effects on the child's life and increase acutely maladaptive outcomes, including adolescent suicidal behavior. This study uses data collected from 2007 to 2012 for 64,329 Florida Department of Juvenile Justice youth (21.67 % female, 42.88 % African American, and 15.37 % Hispanic) to examine the direct and indirect effects of adverse childhood experiences on suicide attempts. Using a generalized structural equation model, the effects of adverse childhood experience scores are estimated on suicidal behavior through pathways of certain aspects of a child's personality development (aggression and impulsivity), as well as adolescent problem behaviors (school difficulties and substance abuse). The results show that a large proportion of the relationship between childhood adversity and suicide is mediated by the aforementioned individual characteristics, specifically through the youth's maladaptive personality development. These results suggest that, if identified early enough, the developmental issues for these youth could potentially be addressed in order to thwart potential suicidal behavior.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Criminal Extremity: New Evidence for Sexual Homicide.

PubMed

DeLisi, Matt; Beauregard, Eric

2018-03-01

Adverse childhood experiences are associated with a wide range of behavioral, health, and psychiatric deficits and have recently been used to study the development of serious offending careers. Unfortunately, this research paradigm has largely ignored forensic populations. This study utilized the adverse childhood experiences framework to examine the associations between exposure to violence, victimization, and total adverse childhood experiences on sexual homicide using a sample of 616 incarcerated adult male sexual offenders from Canada 85 of whom committed sexual homicide. Epidemiological tables of odds revealed that a gradient of adverse childhood experiences was associated with sexual homicide, but that the most significant risks were for offenders who had the most extensive abuse histories. In adjusted models, exposure to violence, victimization, and total adverse childhood experiences increased the odds of sexual homicide by 334%, 249%, and 546%, respectively. These effects intensified in models adjusted for childhood enuresis, cruelty to animals, parental abandonment, deviant sexual behaviors, poor self-image, and sexual problems to 559%, 326%, and 849%, respectively. The adverse childhood experiences framework is a systematic way to organize the criminogenic developmental sequela in sexual homicide. © 2017 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

The impact of childhood adversity on the persistence of psychotic symptoms: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Trotta, A; Murray, R M; Fisher, H L

2015-01-01

Evidence suggests that childhood adversity is associated with the development of psychotic experiences (PE), psychotic symptoms and disorders. However, less is known regarding the impact of early adversity on the persistence of PE and clinically relevant psychosis. Thus we conducted a systematic review of the association between childhood adversity and the course of PE and symptoms over time. A systematic search of Medline, EMBASE and PsychINFO databases was undertaken to identify articles published between January 1956 and November 2014. We included studies conducted on general population samples, individuals at ultra-high risk (UHR) of psychosis, and patients with full-blown psychotic disorders. A meta-analysis was performed on a subgroup. A total of 20 studies were included. Of these, 17 reported positive associations between exposure to overall or specific subtypes of childhood adversity and persistence of PE or clinically relevant psychotic symptoms. A meta-analysis of nine studies yielded a weighted odds ratio of 1.76 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19-2.32, p < 0.001] for general population studies and 1.55 (95% CI 0.32-2.77, p = 0.007) for studies conducted using clinical populations. The available evidence is limited but tentatively suggests that reported exposure to adverse events in childhood is associated with persistence of PE and clinically relevant psychotic symptoms. This partially strengthens the case for addressing the consequences of early adversity in individuals presenting with psychotic phenomena to improve long-term outcomes. However, the heterogeneity of studies was high which urges caution in interpreting the results and highlights the need for more methodologically robust studies.

Detailed Assessments of Childhood AdversityEnhance Prediction of Central Obesity Independent of Gender, Race, Adult Psychosocial Risk and Health Behaviors

PubMed Central

Davis, Cynthia R.; Dearing, Eric; Usher, Nicole; Trifiletti, Sarah; Zaichenko, Lesya; Ollen, Elizabeth; Brinkoetter, Mary T.; Crowell-Doom, Cindy; Joung, Kyoung; Park, Kyung Hee; Mantzoros, Christos S.; Crowell, Judith A.

2017-01-01

Objective This study examined whether a novel indicator of overall childhood adversity, incorporating number of adversities, severity, and chronicity, predicted central obesity beyond contributions of “modifiable” risk factors including psychosocial characteristics and health behaviors in a diverse sample of midlife adults. The study also examined whether the overall adversity score (number of adversities X severity X chronicity) better predicted obesity compared to cumulative adversity (number of adversities), a more traditional assessment of childhood adversity. Materials/Methods 210 Black/African Americans and White/European Americans, mean age = 45.8; ±3.3 years, were studied cross-sectionally. Regression analysis examined overall childhood adversity as a direct, non-modifiable risk factor for central obesity (waist-hip ratio) and body mass index (BMI), with and without adjustment for established adult psychosocial risk factors (education, employment, social functioning) and heath behavior risk factors (smoking, drinking, diet, exercise). Results Overall childhood adversity was an independent significant predictor of central obesity, and the relations between psychosocial and health risk factors and central obesity were not significant when overall adversity was in the model. Overall adversity was not a statistically significant predictor of BMI. Conclusions Overall childhood adversity, incorporating severity and chronicity and cumulative scores, predicts central obesity beyond more contemporaneous risk factors often considered modifiable. This is consistent with early dysregulation of metabolic functioning. Findings can inform practitioners interested in the impact of childhood adversity and personalizing treatment approaches of obesity within high-risk populations. Prevention/intervention research is necessary to discover and address the underlying causes and impact of childhood adversity on metabolic functioning. PMID:24211017

Detailed assessments of childhood adversity enhance prediction of central obesity independent of gender, race, adult psychosocial risk and health behaviors.

PubMed

Davis, Cynthia R; Dearing, Eric; Usher, Nicole; Trifiletti, Sarah; Zaichenko, Lesya; Ollen, Elizabeth; Brinkoetter, Mary T; Crowell-Doom, Cindy; Joung, Kyoung; Park, Kyung Hee; Mantzoros, Christos S; Crowell, Judith A

2014-02-01

This study examined whether a novel indicator of overall childhood adversity, incorporating number of adversities, severity, and chronicity, predicted central obesity beyond contributions of "modifiable" risk factors including psychosocial characteristics and health behaviors in a diverse sample of midlife adults. The study also examined whether the overall adversity score (number of adversities × severity × chronicity) better predicted obesity compared to cumulative adversity (number of adversities), a more traditional assessment of childhood adversity. 210 Black/African Americans and White/European Americans, mean age=45.8; ±3.3 years, were studied cross-sectionally. Regression analysis examined overall childhood adversity as a direct, non-modifiable risk factor for central obesity (waist-hip ratio) and body mass index (BMI), with and without adjustment for established adult psychosocial risk factors (education, employment, social functioning) and heath behavior risk factors (smoking, drinking, diet, exercise). Overall childhood adversity was an independent significant predictor of central obesity, and the relations between psychosocial and health risk factors and central obesity were not significant when overall adversity was in the model. Overall adversity was not a statistically significant predictor of BMI. Overall childhood adversity, incorporating severity and chronicity and cumulative scores, predicts central obesity beyond more contemporaneous risk factors often considered modifiable. This is consistent with early dysregulation of metabolic functioning. Findings can inform practitioners interested in the impact of childhood adversity and personalizing treatment approaches of obesity within high-risk populations. Prevention/intervention research is necessary to discover and address the underlying causes and impact of childhood adversity on metabolic functioning. © 2013.

Longitudinal associations of experiences of adversity and socioeconomic disadvantage during childhood with labour force participation and exit in later adulthood.

PubMed

Fahy, A E; Stansfeld, S A; Smuk, M; Lain, D; van der Horst, M; Vickerstaff, S; Clark, C

2017-06-01

The Extending Working Lives (EWL) agenda seeks to sustain employment up to and beyond traditional retirement ages. This study examined the potential role of childhood factors in shaping labour force participation and exit among older adults, with a view to informing proactive interventions early in the life-course to enhance individuals' future capacity for extending their working lives. Childhood adversity and socioeconomic disadvantage have previously been linked to ill-health across the life-span and sickness benefit in early adulthood. This study builds upon previous research by examining associations between childhood adversity and self-reported labour force participation among older adults (aged 55). Data was from the National Child Development Study - a prospective cohort of all English, Scottish, & Welsh births in one week in 1958. There was evidence for associations between childhood adversity and increased risk of permanent sickness at 55 years - which were largely sustained after adjustment for educational disengagement and adulthood factors (mental/physical health, qualifications, socioeconomic disadvantage). Specifically, children who were abused or neglected were more likely to be permanently sick at 55 years. In addition, among males, those in care, those experiencing illness in the home, and those experiencing two or more childhood adversities were more likely to be permanently sick at 55 years. Childhood factors were also associated with part-time employment and retirement at 55 years. Severe childhood adversities may represent important distal predictors of labour force exit at 55 years, particularly via permanent sickness. Notably, some adversities show associations among males only, which may inform interventions designed to extend working lives. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Recent Coverage of Early Childhood Education Approaches in Open Access Early Childhood Journals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keskin, Burhanettin

2016-01-01

A content analysis of the coverage of the major approaches to early childhood education in the early childhood research journals, published between 2010 and 2014, that are early childhood research oriented and have free online access were investigated. Among 21 journals in early childhood education, two journals were selected for the content…

Additive Contributions of Childhood Adversity and Recent Stressors to Inflammation at Midlife: Findings from the MIDUS Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hostinar, Camelia E.; Lachman, Margie E.; Mroczek, Daniel K.; Seeman, Teresa E.; Miller, Gregory E.

2015-01-01

We examined the joint contributions of self-reported adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and recent life events (RLEs) to inflammation at midlife, by testing 3 competing theoretical models: stress generation, stress accumulation, and early life stress sensitization. We aimed to identify potential mediators between adversity and inflammation.…

Correlates of adverse childhood events among adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

PubMed

Rosenberg, Stanley D; Lu, Weili; Mueser, Kim T; Jankowski, Mary Kay; Cournos, Francine

2007-02-01

Multiple studies have found that childhood adversity is related to a range of poor mental health, substance abuse, poor physical health, and poor social functioning outcomes in the general population of adults. However, despite the high rates of childhood adversity in schizophrenia, the clinical correlates of these events have not been systematically evaluated. This study evaluated the relationship between adverse experiences in childhood and functional, clinical, and health outcomes among adults with schizophrenia. The authors surveyed 569 adults with schizophrenia regarding adverse childhood events (including physical abuse, sexual abuse, parental mental illnesses, loss of a parent, parental separation or divorce, witnessing domestic violence, and foster or kinship care). The relationships between cumulative exposure to these events and psychiatric, physical, and functional outcomes were evaluated. Increased exposure to adverse childhood events was strongly related to psychiatric problems (suicidal thinking, hospitalizations, distress, and posttraumatic stress disorder), substance abuse, physical health problems (HIV infection), medical service utilization (physician visits), and poor social functioning (homelessness or criminal justice involvement). The findings extend the results of research in the general population by suggesting that childhood adversity contributes to worse mental health, substance abuse, worse physical health, and poor functional outcomes in schizophrenia.

A Study of the Relationship between Early Childhood Program Attributes and Early Childhood Reading Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Washington, Novella M.

2012-01-01

This quantitative correlational study focuses on the relationship between early childhood program attributes and early childhood reading success. Data will be gathered from early childhood sites with grades prekindergarten through second grade in which early childhood program attributes exist and early childhood reading is measured by the…

Early Life Conditions, Adverse Life Events, and Chewing Ability at Middle and Later Adulthood

PubMed Central

Watt, Richard G.; Tsakos, Georgios

2014-01-01

Objectives. We sought to determine the extent to which early life conditions and adverse life events impact chewing ability in middle and later adulthood. Methods. Secondary analyses were conducted based on data from waves 2 and 3 of the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), collected in the years 2006 to 2009 and encompassing information on current chewing ability and the life history of persons aged 50 years or older from 13 European countries. Logistic regression models were estimated with sequential inclusion of explanatory variables representing living conditions in childhood and adverse life events. Results. After controlling for current determinants of chewing ability at age 50 years or older, certain childhood and later life course socioeconomic, behavioral, and cognitive factors became evident as correlates of chewing ability at age 50 years or older. Specifically, childhood financial hardship was identified as an early life predictor of chewing ability at age 50 years or older (odds ratio = 1.58; 95% confidence interval = 1.22, 2.06). Conclusions. Findings suggest a potential enduring impact of early life conditions and adverse life events on oral health in middle and later adulthood and are relevant for public health decision-makers who design strategies for optimal oral health. PMID:24625140

Childhood adverse life events, disordered eating, and body mass index in US Military service members.

PubMed

Bakalar, Jennifer L; Barmine, Marissa; Druskin, Lindsay; Olsen, Cara H; Quinlan, Jeffrey; Sbrocco, Tracy; Tanofsky-Kraff, Marian

2018-03-02

US service members appear to be at high-risk for disordered eating. Further, the military is experiencing unprecedented prevalence of overweight and obesity. US service members also report a high prevalence of childhood adverse life event (ALE) exposure. Despite consistent links between early adversity with eating disorders and obesity, there is a dearth of research examining the association between ALE exposure and disordered eating and weight in military personnel. An online survey study was conducted in active duty personnel to examine childhood ALE history using the Life Stressor Checklist - Revised, disordered eating using the Eating Disorder Examination - Questionnaire total score, and self-reported body mass index (BMI, kg/m 2 ). Among 179 respondents, multiple indices of childhood ALE were positively associated with disordered eating. Traumatic childhood ALE and subjective impact of childhood ALE were associated with higher BMI and these associations were mediated by disordered eating. Findings support evaluating childhood ALE exposure among service members with disordered eating and weight concerns. Moreover, findings support the need for prospective research to elucidate these relationships. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

[Correlation of adverse childhood experiences with psychiatric disorders and aggressiveness in adulthood].

PubMed

Samardzić, Ljiljana; Nikolić, Gordana; Grbesa, Grozdanko; Simonović, Maja; Milenković, Tatjana

2010-08-01

Consequences of individual adverse childhood experiences for adult mental health have been precisely studied during past decades. The focus of past research was mainly on childhood maltreatment and neglect. The aim of this paper was to determine association between multiple adverse childhood experiences and psychiatric disorders, as well as their correlation to the degree and type of aggressiveness in adult psychiatric patients. One hundred and thirteen psychiatric outpatients were divided into three diagnostic groups: psychotics, non-psychotics and alcoholics and compared with fourty healthy individuals. Adverse childhood experiences data were gathered retrospectively, using the Adverse childhood experiences questionnaire and explanatory interview. Aggressiveness was assessed using Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire. The Student's t test, ANOVA and correlational analysis were used for evaluation of statistical significance of differences among the groups. A value p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Our results showed that the mean number of adverse childhood experiences in each group of psychiatric patients, as well as in the whole group of patients, was statistically significantly higher than in the group of healthy individuals (p < 0.001); there was a statistically significant difference in score of physical aggressiveness between the patients exposed to adverse childhood experiences and those who were not exposed to them (p < 0.05); scores of physical aggressiveness were in positive correlation with the number of adverse childhood experiences (p < 0.05). The highest mean score of adverse childhood experiences was evidenced in the group of patients with psychotic disorders. Multiple adverse childhood experiences are significantly associated with psychotic disorders, nonpsychotic disorders and alcohol dependence in adulthood and their presence is important morbidity risk factor for psychiatric disorders. They are in positive correlation with

Childhood Adversity, Self-Esteem, and Diurnal Cortisol Profiles across the Lifespan

PubMed Central

Zilioli, Samuele; Slatcher, Richard B.; Chi, Peilian; Li, Xiaoming; Zhao, Junfeng; Zhao, Guoxiang

2016-01-01

Childhood adversity is associated with poor health outcomes in adulthood; the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis has been proposed as a crucial biological intermediary of these long-term effects. Here we tested whether childhood adversity was associated with diurnal cortisol parameters, and whether this link was partially explained by self-esteem. In both adults and children, childhood adversity was associated with lower levels of cortisol at awakening and this association was partially driven by low self-esteem. Further, we found a significant indirect pathway through which greater adversity during childhood was linked to a flatter cortisol slope via self-esteem. Lastly, those youth who had a caregiver with high self-esteem experienced a steeper decline in cortisol throughout the day compared to those youth whose caregiver reported low self-esteem. We conclude that self-esteem is a plausible psychological mechanism through which childhood adversity may get embedded in the activity of the HPA axis across the lifespan. PMID:27481911

Prevalence of Adverse Childhood Experiences in Low-Income Latino Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Children.

PubMed

Loria, Hilda; Caughy, Margaret

2018-01-01

To estimate the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences in low-income Latino children and examine differences in the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences by immigrant generational status. This is a secondary data analysis of the 2011-2012 National Survey of Children's Health, a telephone survey of parents/caregivers of a nationally representative sample of US children. The study sample was limited to Latino children in households with an annual income ≤200% of the federal poverty level (FPL) whose parents responded to a 9-item inventory of adverse childhood experiences. Descriptive statistics estimated the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences and examined differences in prevalence by immigrant generational status. Of 22 297 children, 29% (n = 6483) were Latino (9% first generation, 57% second generation, 30% third or higher generation); 25% (n = 1692) of all Latino children were exposed to 2 or more adverse childhood experiences. Latino immigrant children had a lower prevalence (13%; n = 801) compared with nonimmigrant Latino children (40%; n = 772). The most common adverse childhood experiences were financial hardship and parent divorce/separation. The total number and mean number of adverse childhood experiences differed by child generational status, and the differences persisted after stratification by age and FPL. The prevalence of exposure to adverse childhood experiences was highest among third- or higher-generation nonimmigrant children and lowest among second-generation immigrant children. The prevalence of adverse childhood experiences in low-income Latino children is similar to the prevalence for all US children; however, the prevalence is significantly higher in nonimmigrant children. Targeted screening to address adverse childhood experiences, policy changes, and guidance regarding care practices to address adverse childhood experiences in Latino children are needed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights

The Role of Maternal Adverse Childhood Experiences and Race in Intergenerational High-Risk Smoking Behaviors.

PubMed

Pear, Veronica A; Petito, Lucia C; Abrams, Barbara

2017-05-01

A history of adversity in childhood is associated with cigarette smoking in adulthood, but there is less evidence for prenatal and next-generation offspring smoking. We investigated the association between maternal history of childhood adversity, pregnancy smoking, and early initiation of smoking in offspring, overall and by maternal race/ethnicity. Data on maternal childhood exposure to physical abuse, household alcohol abuse, and household mental illness, prenatal smoking behaviors, and offspring age of smoking initiation were analyzed from the US National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79, n = 2999 mothers) and the NLSY79 Children and Young Adults Survey (NLSYCYA, n = 6596 children). Adjusted risk ratios were estimated using log-linear regression models. We assessed multiplicative interaction by race/ethnicity for all associations and a three-way interaction by maternal exposure to adversity and race/ethnicity for the association between prenatal and child smoking. Maternal exposure to childhood physical abuse was significantly associated with 39% and 20% increased risks of prenatal smoking and child smoking, respectively. Household alcohol abuse was associated with significantly increased risks of 20% for prenatal smoking and 17% for child smoking. The prenatal smoking-child smoking relationship was modified by maternal exposure to household alcohol abuse and race. There were increased risks for Hispanic and white/other mothers as compared to the lowest risk group: black mothers who did not experience childhood household alcohol abuse. Mothers in this national sample who experienced adversity in childhood are more likely to smoke during pregnancy and their offspring are more likely to initiate smoking before age 18. Findings varied by type of adversity and race/ethnicity. These findings support the importance of a life-course approach to understanding prenatal and intergenerational smoking, and suggest that maternal early-life history is a potentially

Childhood adversity, recent life stressors and suicidal behavior in Chinese college students.

PubMed

You, Zhiqi; Chen, Mingxi; Yang, Sen; Zhou, Zongkui; Qin, Ping

2014-01-01

Although the independent effects of childhood adversities and of recent negative events on suicidality have been well-documented, the combinative role of childhood and recent adversities on risk for suicidality is still underexplored, especially in the context of Chinese culture and in consideration of specific types of negative events. 5989 students, randomly sampled from six universities in central China, completed the online survey for this study. Suicidal behavior, life adversity during childhood and stressful events in recent school life were assessed with designed questionnaires. Students experiencing recent stressful life events more often reported an experience of life adversity during childhood. While recent stressful life events and childhood life adversity both were associated with an increased risk for suicidal behavior, the two exposures presented conjunctively and acted interactively to increase the risk. There was noticeable variation of effects associated with specific childhood life adversities, and sexual abuse, poor parental relationship, divorce of parents and loss of a parent were among the adversities associated with the highest increased risk. Recent conflicts with classmates, poor school performance and rupture of romantic relationships were the recent school life stressors associated with the highest increased risk. Childhood adversity and recent school life stressors had a combinative role in predicting suicidality of young people studying in Chinese colleges. Unhappy family life during childhood and recent interpersonal conflicts in school were the most important predictors of suicidality in this population.

Childhood Adversity, Recent Life Stressors and Suicidal Behavior in Chinese College Students

PubMed Central

You, Zhiqi; Chen, Mingxi; Yang, Sen; Zhou, Zongkui; Qin, Ping

2014-01-01

Background Although the independent effects of childhood adversities and of recent negative events on suicidality have been well-documented, the combinative role of childhood and recent adversities on risk for suicidality is still underexplored, especially in the context of Chinese culture and in consideration of specific types of negative events. Method 5989 students, randomly sampled from six universities in central China, completed the online survey for this study. Suicidal behavior, life adversity during childhood and stressful events in recent school life were assessed with designed questionnaires. Results Students experiencing recent stressful life events more often reported an experience of life adversity during childhood. While recent stressful life events and childhood life adversity both were associated with an increased risk for suicidal behavior, the two exposures presented conjunctively and acted interactively to increase the risk. There was noticeable variation of effects associated with specific childhood life adversities, and sexual abuse, poor parental relationship, divorce of parents and loss of a parent were among the adversities associated with the highest increased risk. Recent conflicts with classmates, poor school performance and rupture of romantic relationships were the recent school life stressors associated with the highest increased risk. Conclusions Childhood adversity and recent school life stressors had a combinative role in predicting suicidality of young people studying in Chinese colleges. Unhappy family life during childhood and recent interpersonal conflicts in school were the most important predictors of suicidality in this population. PMID:24681891

Impact of Childhood Adversity and Vasopressin receptor 1a Variation on Social Interaction in Adulthood: A Cross-Sectional Study.

PubMed

Liu, Jia Jia; Lou, Fenglan; Lavebratt, Catharina; Forsell, Yvonne

2015-01-01

Arginine vasopressin (AVP) plays a role in social behavior, through receptor AVPR1A. The promoter polymorphism AVPR1A RS3 has been associated with human social behaviors, and with acute response to stress. Here, the relationships between AVPR1A RS3, early-life stressors, and social interaction in adulthood were explored. Adult individuals from a Swedish population-based cohort (n = 1871) were assessed for self-reported availability of social integration and social attachment and for experience of childhood adversities. Their DNA samples were genotyped for the microsatellite AVPR1A RS3. Among males, particularly those homozygous for the long alleles of AVPR1A RS3 were vulnerable to childhood adversity for their social attachment in adulthood. A similar vulnerability to childhood adversity among long allele carriers was found on adulthood social integration, but here both males and females were influenced. Data were self-reported and childhood adversity data were retrospective. Early-life stress influenced the relationship between AVPR1A genetic variants and social interaction. For social attachment, AVPR1A was of importance in males only. The findings add to previous reports on higher acute vulnerability to stress in persons with long AVPR1A RS3 alleles and increased AVP levels.

Modeling life course pathways from adverse childhood experiences to adult mental health.

PubMed

Jones, Tiffany M; Nurius, Paula; Song, Chiho; Fleming, Christopher M

2018-06-01

Although the association between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and adult mental health is becoming well established, less is known about the complex and multiple pathways through which ACEs exert their influence. Growing evidence suggests that adversity early in life conveys not only early impacts, but also augments risk of stress-related life course cascades that continue to undermine health. The present study aims to test pathways of stress proliferation and stress embodiment processes linking ACEs to mental health impairment in adulthood. Data are from the 2011 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, a representative sample of Washington State adults ages 18 and over (N = 14,001). Structural equation modeling allowed for testing of direct and indirect effects from ACEs though low income status, experiences of adversity in adulthood, and social support. The model demonstrated that adult low income, social support and adult adversity are in fact conduits through which ACEs exert their influence on mental health impairment in adulthood. Significant indirect pathways through these variables supported hypotheses that the effect of ACEs is carried through these variables. This is among the first models that demonstrates multiple stress-related life course pathways through which early life adversity compromises adult mental health. Discussion elaborates multiple service system opportunities for intervention in early and later life to interrupt direct and indirect pathways of ACE effects. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

History of childhood adversity is positively associated with ventral striatal dopamine responses to amphetamine.

PubMed

Oswald, Lynn M; Wand, Gary S; Kuwabara, Hiroto; Wong, Dean F; Zhu, Shijun; Brasic, James R

2014-06-01

Childhood exposure to severe or chronic trauma is an important risk factor for the later development of adult mental health problems, such as substance abuse. Even in nonclinical samples of healthy adults, persons with a history of significant childhood adversity seem to experience greater psychological distress than those without this history. Evidence from rodent studies suggests that early life stress may impair dopamine function in ways that increase risks for drug abuse. However, the degree to which these findings translate to other species remains unclear. This study was conducted to examine associations between childhood adversity and dopamine and subjective responses to amphetamine in humans. Following intake assessment, 28 healthy male and female adults, aged 18-29 years, underwent two consecutive 90-min positron emission tomography studies with high specific activity [(11)C]raclopride. The first scan was preceded by intravenous saline; the second by amphetamine (AMPH 0.3 mg/kg). Consistent with prior literature, findings showed positive associations between childhood trauma and current levels of perceived stress. Moreover, greater number of traumatic events and higher levels of perceived stress were each associated with higher ventral striatal dopamine responses to AMPH. Findings of mediation analyses further showed that a portion of the relationship between childhood trauma and dopamine release may be mediated by perceived stress. Overall, results are consistent with preclinical findings suggesting that early trauma may lead to enhanced sensitivity to psychostimulants and that this mechanism may underlie increased vulnerability for drug abuse.

Adverse childhood experiences in substance use disorder outpatients of a Lebanese addiction center.

PubMed

Naal, Hady; El Jalkh, Tatiana; Haddad, Ramzi

2018-05-02

Childhood adversities (CAs) are well reviewed in mental health and addiction research internationally. However, these variables have not been studied within the framework of addiction in the Middle East region. The present study reports the prevalence of Childhood Adversities in a sample of outpatients seeking treatment for Substance Use Disorder. We used the Adverse Childhood Experiences - International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ) to map out the prevalence of childhood adversities. The studied population was composed of a clinical outpatient sample that met criteria for substance use disorder (N = 144). Results indicated that almost all the sample reported having experienced at least 1 CA, whereby three quarters of the clinical sample reported experiencing 6 or more adversities. Childhood adversities are highly prevalent in a Lebanese substance use disorder population which raises the need for better screening strategies and more understanding of Adverse Childhood Experiences in this specific population.

Descriptive epidemiology of chronic childhood adversity in Mexican adolescents.

PubMed

Benjet, Corina; Borges, Guilherme; Medina-Mora, María Elena; Zambrano, Joaquín; Cruz, Carlos; Méndez, Enrique

2009-11-01

To estimate the prevalence of adversity (neglect and abuse, parental loss, parental psychopathology, economic adversity, and serious physical illness), the interrelatedness of adversities, and their socio-demographic correlates. This is a multistage probability survey of 3005 adolescents aged 12-17 years residing in Mexico City. Youth were administered the computer-assisted adolescent version of the World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview in their homes. The childhood and posttraumatic stress disorder sections provided information regarding adversity. Descriptive and logistic regression analyses were performed considering the multistage and weighted sample design. A total of 68% of adolescents have experienced at least one type of chronic childhood adversity, whereas almost 7% have experienced four of more. The most frequent adversity is economic adversity followed by witnessing domestic violence. Boys experience more neglect than girls, and girls experience more sexual abuse than boys. Family dysfunction adversities tend to clump together such that youth exposed to abuse of any form also report witnessing domestic violence and parental mental pathology. Youth whose parents have divorced are likely to experience economic adversity. Parental death is independent of experiencing other childhood adversities. Older adolescents, school drop-outs, those with young mothers, those with more siblings, and those whose parents have less education are more likely to experience adversity. Although most adolescents have experienced some adversity, a small group is exposed to many adversities. Understanding the distribution of adversities may help us to identify at-risk youth and to better interpret the findings from studies on the role of adversity in diverse health outcomes.

Adverse childhood experiences and disability in U.S. adults.

PubMed

Schüssler-Fiorenza Rose, Sophia Miryam; Xie, Dawei; Stineman, Margaret

2014-08-01

To assess relationships between adverse childhood experiences and self-reported disabilities in adult life. Cross-sectional, random-digit-dialed, state-population-based survey (Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System). Fourteen states and the District of Columbia. Noninstitutionalized adults ages ≥18 years surveyed in 2009 and/or in 2010 (n = 81,184). The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) Module asks about abuse (physical, sexual, emotional), family dysfunction (exposures to domestic violence, living with mentally ill, substance abusing, or incarcerated family member(s), and/or parental separation and/or divorce) that occurred before age 18 years. The ACE score sums affirmed ACE categories (range, 0-8). We controlled for demographic characteristics (age, race, education, income, and marital status) and self-reported physical health conditions (stroke, myocardial infarction, diabetes, coronary heart disease, asthma). Five states asked participants about mental health conditions (anxiety, depression). A subset analysis of participants in these states evaluated the effect of adjusting for these conditions. The primary outcome was disability (self-reported activity limitation and/or assistive device use). More than half of participants (57%) reported at least 1 adverse childhood experience category, and 23.2% reported disability. The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of disability increased in a graded fashion from odds ratio 1.3 (95% confidence interval, 1.2-1.4) among those who experienced 1 adverse experience to odds ratio 5.8 (95% confidence interval, 4.6-7.5) among those with 7-8 adverse experiences compared with those with no such experiences when adjusting for demographic factors. The relationship between adverse experiences and disability remained strong after adjusting for physical and mental health conditions. There is a strong graded relationship between childhood exposure to abuse and household

Childhood adversity and risk of suicide: cohort study of 548 721 adolescents and young adults in Sweden.

PubMed

Björkenstam, Charlotte; Kosidou, Kyriaki; Björkenstam, Emma

2017-04-19

Objective  To examine the relation between childhood adversity, the role of school performance, and childhood psychopathology and the risk of suicide. Design  Cohort study of register based indicators of childhood adversity (at ages 0-14) including death in the family (suicide analysed separately), parental substance abuse, parental psychiatric disorder, substantial parental criminality, parental separation/single parent household, receipt of public assistance, and residential instability. Setting  Swedish medical birth register and various Swedish population based registers. Participants  548 721 individuals born 1987-91. Main outcome measures  Estimates of suicide risk at ages 15-24 calculated as incidence rate ratios adjusted for time at risk and confounders. Results  Adjusted incidence rate ratios for the relation between childhood adversity and suicide during adolescence and young adulthood ranged from 1.6 (95% confidence interval 1.1 to 2.4) for residential instability to 2.9 (1.4 to 5.9) for suicide in the family. There was a dose-response relation between accumulating childhood adversity and risk: 1.1 (0.9 to 1.4) for those exposed to one adversity and 1.9 (1.4 to 2.5) and 2.6 (1.9 to 3.4) for those exposed to two and three or more adversities, respectively. The association with increased risk of suicide remained even after adjustment for school performance and childhood psychopathology. Conclusion  Childhood adversity is a risk factor for suicide in adolescence and young adulthood, particularly accumulated adversity. These results emphasise the importance of understanding the social mechanisms of suicide and the need for effective interventions early in life, aiming to alleviate the risk in disadvantaged children. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

The impact of childhood adversities on anxiety and depressive disorders in adulthood.

PubMed

Marackova, Marketa; Prasko, Jan; Matousek, Stanislav; Latalova, Klara; Hruby, Radovan; Holubova, Michaela; Slepecky, Milos; Vrbova, Kristyna; Grambal, Ales

2016-12-01

The childhood adversities model is generally accepted as a predictor of adult psychopathology vulnerability. It stems from child development theories, but the question remains as of how well solid research supports it. The aim of this article is to give a review of the studies concerning childhood adversities and their impact on the development of anxiety disorders and major depressive disorder in adulthood. A computerized search of the MEDLINE database of publications up to 31 March 2016 was done, using the keywords "childhood adversities, abuse, maltreatment, bullying" and "anxiety disorders, depressive disorder". No backward time constraints were used. Non-original studies, conference abstracts, books and book chapters, commentaries, and dissertations were excluded. The influence of childhood adversities on later age psychopathology is examined in five categories: the negative family atmosphere, abuse, loss of a close person, the social difficulties, and problems at school (including, most importantly bullying). The majority of studies confirmed the connection between childhood adversities and anxiety and depression disorders in adulthood. The character of the adversities is not, apparently, a specific predictor for a concrete psychopathology. Multiple adversities are more frequently connected with depressive and anxiety disorders in adulthood, cumulating together in broader adverse context. Childhood adversities were found to increase vulnerability to the distress, depression, fear and anxiety later in the life. However, specific correlations between a given childhood adversity and a specific form of depression or anxiety disorder were either not found or weak. This is in line with the generally accepted view considering each of these factors a non-specific stressor increasing vulnerability to mood and affect disorders later in life.

Assessing the interplay of childhood adversities with more recent stressful life events and conditions in predicting panic pathology among adults from the general population.

PubMed

Asselmann, E; Stender, J; Grabe, H J; König, J; Schmidt, C O; Hamm, A O; Pané-Farré, C A

2018-01-01

Although research suggests that (a) childhood adversities and more recent stressful life events/conditions are risk factors for panic pathology and that (b) early life stress increases vulnerability to later psychopathology, it remains unclear whether childhood adversities amplify the association between more recent stressful life events/conditions and panic pathology. Data were derived from a general population sample (Study of Health in Pomerania, SHIP). Lifetime panic pathology was assessed with the Munich Composite International Diagnostic Interview (M-CIDI). Childhood adversities (emotional, physical and sexual abuse; emotional and physical neglect) were assessed with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). More recent separation/loss events and long-lasting stressful conditions were assessed with the Stralsund Life Event List (SEL). Individuals with lifetime panic pathology (fearful spell, panic attack or panic disorder, N = 286) were compared to controls without any psychopathology (N = 286, matched for sex and age). Conditional logistic regressions revealed that childhood adversities as well as more recent separation/loss events and long-lasting stressful conditions were associated with panic pathology (OR 1.1-2.5). Moreover, more recent separation/loss events - but not long-lasting stressful conditions - interacted statistically with each of the examined childhood adversities except for sexual abuse in predicting panic pathology (OR 1.1-1.3). That is, separation/loss events were associated more strongly with panic pathology among individuals with higher childhood adversities. Data were assessed retrospectively and might be subject to recall biases. Findings suggest that early childhood adversities amplify the risk of developing panic pathology after experiencing separation or loss events. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Commentary: Childhood exposure to environmental adversity and the well-being of people with intellectual disabilities.

PubMed

Emerson, E

2013-07-01

People with intellectual disabilities have poorer health than their non-disabled peers. They are also more likely to be exposed to a wide range of environmental adversities in childhood. Research undertaken in the general population has demonstrated that exposure to environmental adversity in childhood can have an adverse impact on health and well-being across the life course. Recently, research in this area has added new breadth and depth to our understanding of: (1) the extent to which cumulative exposure to environmental adversities across the life course, but especially in early childhood, can reduce health and well-being; (2) the social, psychological and biological mediating pathways through which environmental adversities may impair health; (3) the processes associated with resilience and vulnerability in the face of exposure to adversity; and (4) the social significance of these effects in accounting for the magnitude of the inequalities in health that are apparent both between and within populations. This new knowledge is making a significant contribution to the development of social policies that seek to combine health gain with the reduction in health inequalities. This paper attempts to apply this knowledge to research aimed at understanding and improving the health and well-being of people with intellectual disabilities. © 2012 The Author. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd, MENCAP & IASSID.

[Screening of adverse childhood experiences in preschoolers: scoping review].

PubMed

Vega-Arce, Maribel; Núñez-Ulloa, Gastón

The aim of the present article was to describe available scientific publications detailing strategies and screening tools for Adverse Childhood Experiences in preschoolers (2 to 5 years of age). A scoping review of the topic was carried out through investigative articles published in peer review journals from January 1998 to June 2017 and indexed in seven international databases (Cochrane Library, EBSCO, PubMed, Science Direct, Springer, Web of Science and Scielo). The articles were selected based on predefined criteria, using limiters and manual screening. Twenty articles published between 1999 and 2017 were selected. The screening of adverse childhood experiences is performed through opportunistic recruitment in a professional context aimed at caregivers and children, which integrates training actions, application of screening tools and reception of identified cases. Screening tools differ between interviews and questionnaires. Furthermore, we report the periodicity of the screening, the behaviors and beliefs of the professionals against it and the barriers to its implementation. This review confirms that the screening of Adverse Childhood Experiences is an emerging topic in the research field. We emphasize the need to systematize and evaluate the strategies and tools for screening Adverse Childhood Experiences, as well as to develop local approaches to respond to the needs of children exposed to adversity. Copyright © 2017 Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez. Publicado por Masson Doyma México S.A. All rights reserved.

Health consequences of adverse childhood experiences: a systematic review.

PubMed

Kalmakis, Karen A; Chandler, Genevieve E

2015-08-01

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been associated with negative health outcomes, but the evidence has had limited application in primary care practice. The purpose of this study was to systematically review the research on associations between ACEs and adult health outcomes to inform nurse practitioners (NPs) in primary care practice. The databases PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Social Abstracts were searched for articles published in English between 2008 and 2013 using the search term "adverse childhood experiences." Forty-two research articles were included in the synthesis. The evidence was synthesized and is reported following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis procedure (PRISMA). ACEs have been associated with health consequences including physical and psychological conditions, risk behaviors, developmental disruption, and increased healthcare utilization. Generalization of the results is limited by a majority of studies (41/42) measuring childhood adversity using self-report measures. NPs are encouraged to incorporate assessment of patients' childhood history in routine primary care and to consider the evidence that supports a relationship between ACEs and health. Although difficult, talking about patient's childhood experiences may positively influence health outcomes. ©2015 American Association of Nurse Practitioners.

Positive childhood experiences predict less psychopathology and stress in pregnant women with childhood adversity: A pilot study of the benevolent childhood experiences (BCEs) scale.

PubMed

Narayan, Angela J; Rivera, Luisa M; Bernstein, Rosemary E; Harris, William W; Lieberman, Alicia F

2018-04-01

This pilot study examined the psychometric properties of the Benevolent Childhood Experiences (BCEs) scale, a new instrument designed to assess positive early life experiences in adults with histories of childhood maltreatment and other adversities. A counterpart to the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) questionnaire, the BCEs was developed to be multiculturally-sensitive and applicable regardless of socioeconomic position, urban-rural background, or immigration status. Higher levels of BCEs were hypothesized to predict lower levels of psychopathology and stress beyond the effects of ACES in a sample of ethnically diverse, low-income pregnant women. BCEs were also expected to show adequate internal validity across racial/ethnic groups and test-retest stability from the prenatal to the postnatal period. Participants were 101 pregnant women (M=29.10years, SD=6.56, range=18-44; 37% Latina, 22% African-American, 20% White, 21% biracial/multiracial/other; 37% foreign-born, 26% Spanish-speaking) who completed the BCEs and ACEs scales; assessments of prenatal depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, perceived stress, and exposure to stressful life events (SLEs) during pregnancy; and demographic information. Higher levels of BCEs predicted less PTSD symptoms and SLEs, above and beyond ACEs. The BCEs showed excellent test-retest reliability, and mean levels were comparable across racial/ethnic and Spanish-English groups of women. Person-oriented analyses also showed that higher levels of BCEs offset the effects of ACEs on prenatal stress and psychopathology. The BCEs scale indexes promising promotive factors associated with lower trauma-related symptomatology and stress exposure during pregnancy and illuminates how favorable childhood experiences may counteract long-term effects of childhood adversity. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Age of onset of bipolar disorder: Combined effect of childhood adversity and familial loading of psychiatric disorders.

PubMed

Post, Robert M; Altshuler, Lori L; Kupka, Ralph; McElroy, Susan L; Frye, Mark A; Rowe, Michael; Grunze, Heinz; Suppes, Trisha; Keck, Paul E; Leverich, Gabriele S; Nolen, Willem A

2016-10-01

Family history and adversity in childhood are two replicated risk factors for early onset bipolar disorder. However, their combined impact has not been adequately studied. Based on questionnaire data from 968 outpatients with bipolar disorder who gave informed consent, the relationship and interaction of: 1) parental and grandparental total burden of psychiatric illness; and 2) the degree of adversity the patient experienced in childhood on their age of onset of bipolar disorder was examined with multiple regression and illustrated with a heat map. The familial loading and child adversity vulnerability factors were significantly related to age of onset of bipolar and their combined effect was even larger. A heat map showed that at the extremes (none of each factor vs high amounts of both) the average age of onset differed by almost 20 years (mean = 25.8 vs 5.9 years of age). The data were not based on interviews of family members and came from unverified answers on a patient questionnaire. Family loading for psychiatric illness and adversity in childhood combine to have a very large influence on age of onset of bipolar disorder. These variables should be considered in assessment of risk for illness onset in different populations, the need for early intervention, and in the design of studies of primary and secondary prevention. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Childhood Adversity, Self-Esteem, and Diurnal Cortisol Profiles Across the Life Span.

PubMed

Zilioli, Samuele; Slatcher, Richard B; Chi, Peilian; Li, Xiaoming; Zhao, Junfeng; Zhao, Guoxiang

2016-09-01

Childhood adversity is associated with poor health outcomes in adulthood; the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis has been proposed as a crucial biological intermediary of these long-term effects. Here, we tested whether childhood adversity was associated with diurnal cortisol parameters and whether this link was partially explained by self-esteem. In both adults and youths, childhood adversity was associated with lower levels of cortisol at awakening, and this association was partially driven by low self-esteem. Further, we found a significant indirect pathway through which greater adversity during childhood was linked to a flatter cortisol slope via self-esteem. Finally, youths who had a caregiver with high self-esteem experienced a steeper decline in cortisol throughout the day compared with youths whose caregiver reported low self-esteem. We conclude that self-esteem is a plausible psychological mechanism through which childhood adversity may get embedded in the activity of the HPA axis across the life span. © The Author(s) 2016.

Maternal Adverse Childhood Experience and Infant Health: Biomedical and Psychosocial Risks as Intermediary Mechanisms.

PubMed

Madigan, Sheri; Wade, Mark; Plamondon, Andre; Maguire, Jonathon L; Jenkins, Jennifer M

2017-08-01

To assess the mechanisms accounting for the transfer of risk from one generation to the next, especially as they relate to maternal adverse childhood experiences and infant physical and emotional health outcomes. Participants were 501 community mother-infant dyads recruited shortly after the birth and followed up at 18 months. Mothers retrospectively reported on their adverse childhood experiences. The main outcome measures were parent-reported infant physical health and emotional problems. Potential mechanisms of intergenerational transmission included cumulative biomedical risk (eg, prenatal and perinatal complications) and postnatal psychosocial risk (eg, maternal depression, single parenthood, marital conflict). Four or more adverse childhood experiences were related to a 2- and 5-fold increased risk of experiencing any biomedical or psychosocial risk, respectively. There was a linear association between number of adverse childhood experiences and extent of biomedical and psychosocial risk. Path analysis revealed that the association between maternal adverse childhood experiences and infant physical health operated specifically through cumulative biomedical risk, while the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and infant emotional health operated specifically through cumulative psychosocial risk. This pattern was not explained by maternal childhood disadvantage or current neighborhood poverty. Maternal adverse childhood experiences confer vulnerability to prenatal, perinatal, and postnatal psychosocial health. The association between adverse childhood experiences and offspring physical and emotional health operates through discrete intermediary mechanisms. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and the Health of University Students in Eight Provinces of Vietnam.

PubMed

Tran, Quynh Anh; Dunne, Michael P; Vo, Thang Van; Luu, Ngoc Hoat

2015-11-01

Recent systematic reviews have emphasized the need for more research into the health and social impacts of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in the Asia-Pacific region. This cross-sectional study was conducted with 2099 young adult students in 8 medical universities throughout Vietnam. An anonymous, self-report questionnaire included the World Health Organization ACE-International Questionnaire and standardized measures of mental and physical health. Three quarters (76%) of the students reported at least one exposure to ACEs; 21% had 4 or more ACEs. The most commonly reported adversities were emotional abuse, physical abuse, and witnessing a household member being treated violently (42.3%, 39.9%, and 34.6%, respectively). Co-occurrence of ACEs had dose-response relationships with poor mental health, suicidal ideation, and low physical health-related quality of life. This first multisite study of ACEs among Vietnamese university students provided evidence that childhood adversity is common and is significantly linked with impaired health and well-being into the early adult years. © 2015 APJPH.

Childhood Adversity and Epigenetic Regulation of Glucocorticoid Signaling Genes: Associations in Children and Adults

PubMed Central

Tyrka, Audrey R.; Ridout, Kathryn K.; Parade, Stephanie H.

2017-01-01

Early childhood experiences have lasting effects on development, including the risk for psychiatric disorders. Research examining the biologic underpinnings of these associations has revealed the impact of childhood maltreatment on the physiologic stress response and activity of the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. A growing body of literature supports the hypothesis that environmental exposures mediate their biological effects via epigenetic mechanisms. Methylation, which is thought to be the most stable form of epigenetic change, is a likely mechanism by which early life exposures has lasting effects. In this review, we present recent evidence related to epigenetic regulation of genes involved in HPA axis regulation, namely the glucocorticoid receptor gene (NR3C1) and FK506 binding protein 51 (FKBP5), after childhood adversity and associations with risk for psychiatric disorders. Implications for the development of interventions and future research are discussed. PMID:27691985

Relationship of childhood adversity and neighborhood violence to a proinflammatory phenotype in emerging adult African American men: An epigenetic link.

PubMed

Janusek, Linda Witek; Tell, Dina; Gaylord-Harden, Noni; Mathews, Herbert L

2017-02-01

African American men (AAM) who are exposed to trauma and adversity during their early life are at greater risk for poor health over their lifespan. Exposure to adversity during critical developmental windows may embed an epigenetic signature that alters expression of genes that regulate stress response systems, including those genes that regulate the inflammatory response to stress. Such an epigenetic signature may increase risk for diseases exacerbated by inflammation, and may contribute to health disparity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extent to which exposure to early life adversity influences the psychological, cortisol, and proinflammatory response to acute stress (Trier Social Stress Test - TSST) in emerging adult AAM, ages 18-25years (N=34). Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine the cortisol and IL-6 pattern of response to the TSST with respect to childhood adversity factors and DNA methylation of the IL-6 promoter. Findings revealed that in response to the TSST, greater levels of childhood trauma and indirect exposure to neighborhood violence were associated with a greater TSST-induced IL-6 response, and a blunted cortisol response. Reduced methylation of the IL6 promoter was related to increased exposure to childhood trauma and greater TSST-induced IL-6 levels. These results support the concept that exposure to childhood adversity amplifies the adult proinflammatory response to stress, which is related to epigenetic signature. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Childhood adversity and social functioning in psychosis: Exploring clinical and cognitive mediators.

PubMed

Palmier-Claus, Jasper; Berry, Katherine; Darrell-Berry, Hannah; Emsley, Richard; Parker, Sophie; Drake, Richard; Bucci, Sandra

2016-04-30

Childhood adversity may increase risk of impaired social functioning across the continuum of psychosis. However, the pathways by which adversity dictates functional outcome remain underexplored. This study investigated the association between childhood adversity and social functioning, and the clinical and cognitive mediators of this relationship. Fifty-four clinical (20 chronic, 20 first episode, 14 at ultra-high risk) and 120 non-clinical participants completed standardised questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and tests of theory of mind ability. The authors used multiple group structural equation modelling to fit mediation models allowing for differential relationships between the clinical and non-clinical samples. When examining each pathway separately, depression, paranoia and anxious attachment mediated the effect of childhood adversity on social functioning. In a combined model, depression was the only significant mediating variable with greater adversity predicting lower mood across groups. Childhood adversity did not significantly predict theory of mind ability in any of the models. This is the first study to indicate that childhood adversity acts on social functioning by increasing levels of depression, suggesting a common mechanism across the spectrum of psychosis. Clinical interventions should target low mood in order to improve social functioning at all stages of psychotic disorder. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Intersections: Feminisms/Early Childhoods. Rethinking Childhood, Volume 3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hauser, Mary E., Ed.; Jipson, Janice A., Ed.

Through personal narrative and scholarly reflection, this book examines the foundations of early childhood education, contemporary curricular and pedagogical practice in early childhood education, and critical issues affecting the multiple worlds of childhood. Essays by individual contributors are linked by contributors' conversations. An…

Relational resilience as a potential mediator between adverse childhood experiences and prenatal depression.

PubMed

Howell, Kathryn H; Miller-Graff, Laura E; Schaefer, Lauren M; Scrafford, Kathryn E

2017-08-01

This study examined the indirect effects of individual, relational, and contextual resilience in the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and prenatal depression. Participants included 101 pregnant women. Adverse childhood experiences had a direct effect on depression, B = 1.11, standard error = .44, p = .01, and relational resilience, B = -1.15, standard error = .19, p < .001, but not individual or contextual resilience. With resilience as a mediator, the effect of adverse childhood experiences on depression was no longer significant. Specifically, relational resilience had a significant indirect effect (IE) on the association between adverse childhood experiences and depression, IE = 1.04, boot standard error  = .28 (95% confidence interval  = .58, 1.68). Results emphasize the associated role of relational qualities, such as sense of security and belongingness, with childhood adversity and mental health.

Adverse childhood experiences and substance use among Hispanic emerging adults in Southern California

PubMed Central

Allem, Jon-Patrick; Soto, Daniel W.; Baezconde-Garbanati, Lourdes; Unger, Jennifer B.

2015-01-01

Introduction Emerging adults who experienced stressful childhoods may engage in substance use as a maladaptive coping strategy. Given the collectivistic values Hispanics encounter growing up, adverse childhood experiences may play a prominent role in substance use decisions as these events violate the assumptions of group oriented cultural paradigms. Alternatively, adverse childhood events might not increase the risk of substance use because strong family ties could mitigate the potential maladaptive behaviors associated with these adverse experiences. This study examined whether adverse childhood experiences were associated with substance use among Hispanic emerging adults. Method Participants (n=1420, mean age=22, 41% male) completed surveys indicating whether they experienced any of 8 specific adverse experiences within their first 18 years of life, and past-month cigarette use, marijuana use, hard drug use, and binge drinking. Logistic regression models examined the associations between adverse childhood experiences and each category of substance use, controlling for age, gender, and depressive symptoms. Results The number of adverse childhood experiences was significantly associated with each category of substance use. A difference in the number of adverse childhood experiences, from 0 to 8, was associated with a 22% higher probability of cigarette smoking, a 24% higher probability of binge drinking, a 31% higher probability of marijuana use, and a 12% higher probability of hard drug use respectively. Conclusions These findings should be integrated into prevention/intervention programs in hopes of quelling the duration and severity of substance use behaviors among Hispanic emerging adults. PMID:26160522

ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES AMONG YOUTH AGING OUT OF FOSTER CARE: A LATENT CLASS ANALYSIS

PubMed Central

Rebbe, Rebecca; Nurius, Paula S.; Ahrens, Kym R.; Courtney, Mark E.

2017-01-01

Research has demonstrated that youth who age out, or emancipate, from foster care face deleterious outcomes across a variety of domains in early adulthood. This article builds on this knowledge base by investigating the role of adverse childhood experience accumulation and composition on these outcomes. A latent class analysis was performed to identify three subgroups: Complex Adversity, Environmental Adversity, and Lower Adversity. Differences are found amongst the classes in terms of young adult outcomes in terms of socio-economic outcomes, psychosocial problems, and criminal behaviors. The results indicate that not only does the accumulation of adversity matter, but so does the composition of the adversity. These results have implications for policymakers, the numerous service providers and systems that interact with foster youth, and for future research. PMID:28458409

Stress sensitization and adolescent depressive severity as a function of childhood adversity: a link to anxiety disorders.

PubMed

Espejo, Emmanuel P; Hammen, Constance L; Connolly, Nicole P; Brennan, Patricia A; Najman, Jake M; Bor, William

2007-04-01

The goal of the present study was to determine whether exposure to adversity in childhood contributes to a differential threshold at which stressful life events provoke depressive reactions in adolescence. In addition, to address empirical and conceptual questions about stress effects, the moderating effect of anxiety disorder history was also explored. This examination was conducted in a sample of 816 children of depressed and nondepressed mothers, who were followed from birth to age 15. Information on adversities experienced in childhood was collected both from mothers during the first five years of their youth's life and from the youths themselves at age 15, and included information on the mother's relationship with her partner, maternal psychopathology, as well as youth-reported abuse. Results indicated that youths with both greater exposure to adversity in childhood and a history of an anxiety disorder displayed increased depressive severity following low levels of episodic stress compared to youths with only one or neither of these risk factors. The results are speculated to reflect the possibility that early anxiety disorders associated with exposure to adversity in childhood may be a marker of dysregulated stress responses, and may help to account for the comorbidity of depression and anxiety in some individuals.

Childhood adversity, attachment and personality styles as predictors of anxiety among elderly caregivers.

PubMed

Prigerson, H G; Shear, M K; Bierhals, A J; Zonarich, D L; Reynolds, C F

1996-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the ways in which childhood adversity, attachment and personality styles influenced the likelihood of having an anxiety disorder among aged caregivers for terminally ill spouses. We also sought to determine how childhood adversity and attachment/personality styles jointly influenced the likelihood of developing an anxiety disorder among aged caregivers. Data were derived from semistructured interviews with 50 spouses (aged 60 and above) of terminally ill patients. The Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse (CECA) record provided retrospective, behaviorally based information on childhood adversity. Measures of attachment and personality styles were obtained from self-report questionnaires, and the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-III-R (SCID) was used to determine diagnoses for anxiety disorders. Logistic regression models estimated the effects of childhood adversity, attachment/personality disturbances, and the interaction between the two on the likelihood of having an anxiety disorder. Results indicated that childhood adversity and paranoid, histrionic and self-defeating styles all directly increase the odds of having an anxiety disorder as an elderly spousal caregiver. In addition, childhood adversity in conjunction with borderline, antisocial and excessively dependent styles increased the likelihood of having an anxiety disorder. The results indicate the need to investigate further the interaction between childhood experiences and current attachment/personality styles in their effects on the development of anxiety disorders.

Childhood Adversity, Daily Stress, and Marital Strain in Same-Sex and Different-Sex Marriages

PubMed Central

Donnelly, Rachel; Umberson, Debra; Kroeger, Rhiannon A.

2017-01-01

Childhood adversity has enduring consequences for individuals throughout life, including increased reactivity to stress that may contribute to marital strain in adulthood. Past research on gendered experiences of heterosexual spouses raises questions about how the influence of childhood adversity might differ for men and women in same-sex marriages. We analyze dyadic diary data from 756 individuals in 106 male same-sex, 157 female same-sex, and 115 different-sex marriages to consider how childhood adversity moderates the association between daily stress and marital strain. Results suggest that the negative consequences of daily stress for marital strain are amplified by past childhood adversity with variation for men and women in same- and different-sex unions, such that women and those in same-sex marriages may experience some protection from the adverse consequences of childhood adversity.

Influence of parental education, childhood adversities, and current living conditions on daily smoking in early adulthood.

PubMed

Kestilä, Laura; Koskinen, Seppo; Martelin, Tuija; Rahkonen, Ossi; Pensola, Tiina; Pirkola, Sami; Patja, Kristiina; Aromaa, Arpo

2006-12-01

To assess the association of parental education, childhood living conditions and adversities with daily smoking in early adulthood and to analyse the effect of the respondent's own education, main economic activity, and current family structure on these associations. The study is based on a representative two-stage cluster sample (N = 1894, participation rate 79%) of young adults aged 18-29, in 2000, in Finland. The outcome measure is daily smoking. Parental smoking and the respondent's own education had the strongest effects on daily smoking. If both parents of the respondent were smokers, then the respondent was most likely to be a smoker too (for men OR (odds ratio) = 3.01, for women OR = 2.41 after all adjustments). Young adults in the lowest educational category had a much higher risk of daily smoking than those in the highest category (OR = 5.88 for women, 4.48 for men). For women parental divorce (OR = 2.31) and current family structure also determined daily smoking. Parental education had a strong gradient in daily smoking and the effect appeared to be mediated largely by the respondent's own educational level. Childhood living conditions are strong determinants of daily smoking. Much of their influence seems to be mediated through current living conditions, which are also determined by childhood conditions. Determinants of smoking behaviour are developed throughout the life course. The findings stress the importance of the respondent's education and parental smoking as determinants of smoking behaviour. Our results support the notion that intervention on smoking initiation and cessation should be considered throughout the life course. Parental involvement in fostering non-smoking would be important.

Mindfulness as a mediator of the association between adverse childhood experiences and alcohol use and consequences.

PubMed

Brett, Emma I; Espeleta, Hannah C; Lopez, Susanna V; Leavens, Eleanor L S; Leffingwell, Thad R

2018-09-01

One-third of college students report past-year heavy episodic drinking, making college student alcohol use an important area for continued research. Research has consistently linked early experiences of adversity to problematic substance use in adolescence and adulthood. Given the negative health consequences associated with heavy episodic drinking, it is imperative to identify mechanisms that contribute to this relation. Low levels of mindfulness have been linked to early adversity as well as impulsivity and alcohol use, therefore, the current study aims to examine the mediating role of mindfulness in the relation between early adversity and current alcohol use and consequences. Undergraduate students (N = 385) at a Midwestern university completed an online questionnaire assessing experiences of childhood adversity, trait mindfulness, and current alcohol use and related consequences. Results indicated that increased adverse experiences and lower levels of mindfulness predicted both increased alcohol consumption and consequences (ps < 0.025), with mindfulness mediating the relationships. Mindfulness is a predictor of alcohol outcomes and appears to mediate the relation between early adversity and alcohol use and consequences. Findings suggest that students with a history of adversity are more likely to exhibit lower levels of mindfulness, which may lead to an increase in alcohol consumption and consequences in early adulthood. Targeted alcohol intervention efforts that incorporate mindfulness skills may be particularly beneficial for those who have experienced early adversity. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Prevention of mental disorders requires action on adverse childhood experiences.

PubMed

Jorm, Anthony F; Mulder, Roger T

2018-04-01

The increased availability of treatment has not reduced the prevalence of mental disorders, suggesting a need for a greater emphasis on prevention. With chronic physical diseases, successful prevention efforts have focused on reducing the big risk factors. If this approach is applied to mental disorders, the big risk factors are adverse childhood experiences, which have major effects on most classes of mental disorder across the lifespan. While the evidence base is limited, there is support for a number of interventions to reduce adverse childhood experiences, including an important role for mental health professionals. Taking action on adverse childhood experiences may be our best chance of emulating the success of public health action to prevent chronic physical diseases and thereby reduce the large global burden of mental disorders.

Childhood adversity moderates the effect of ADH1B on risk for alcohol-related phenotypes in Jewish Israeli drinkers.

PubMed

Meyers, Jacquelyn L; Shmulewitz, Dvora; Wall, Melanie M; Keyes, Katherine M; Aharonovich, Efrat; Spivak, Baruch; Weizman, Abraham; Frisch, Amos; Edenberg, Howard J; Gelernter, Joel; Grant, Bridget F; Hasin, Deborah

2015-01-01

Childhood adversity and genetic variant ADH1B-rs1229984 have each been shown to influence heavy alcohol consumption and disorders. However, little is known about how these factors jointly influence these outcomes. We assessed the main and additive interactive effects of childhood adversity (abuse, neglect and parental divorce) and the ADH1B-rs1229984 on the quantitative phenotypes 'maximum drinks in a day' (Maxdrinks) and DSM-Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) severity, adjusting for demographic variables, in an Israeli sample of adult household residents (n = 1143) evaluated between 2007 and 2009. Childhood adversity and absence of the protective ADH1B-rs1229984 A allele were associated with greater mean Maxdrinks (mean differences: 1.50; 1.13, respectively) and AUD severity (mean ratios: 0.71; 0.27, respectively). In addition, childhood adversity moderated the ADH1B-rs1229984 effect on Maxdrinks (P < 0.01) and AUD severity (P < 0.05), in that there was a stronger effect of ADH1B-rs1229984 genotype on Maxdrinks and AUD severity among those who had experienced childhood adversity compared with those who had not. ADH1B-rs1229984 impacts alcohol metabolism. Therefore, among those at risk for greater consumption, e.g. those who experienced childhood adversity, ADH1B-rs1229984 appears to have a stronger effect on alcohol consumption and consequently on risk for AUD symptom severity. Evidence for the interaction of genetic vulnerability and early life adversity on alcohol-related phenotypes provides further insight into the complex relationships between genetic and environmental risk factors. © 2013 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Close Friends' Psychopathology as a Pathway From Early Adversity to Young Adulthood Depressive Symptoms.

PubMed

Raposa, Elizabeth B; Hammen, Constance L; Brennan, Patricia A

2015-01-01

Past research has highlighted the negative impact of early adverse experiences on childhood social functioning, including friendship selection, and later mental health. The current study explored the long-term effects of early adversity on young adults' close friends' psychological symptoms and the impact of these close friendships on later depressive symptoms. A prospective longitudinal design was used to examine 816 youth from a large community-based sample, who were followed from birth through age 25. Participants' mothers provided contemporaneous information about adversity exposure up to age 5, and participants completed questionnaires about their own depressive symptoms at age 20 and in their early 20s. Youth also nominated a best friend to complete questionnaires about his or her own psychopathology at age 20. Individuals who experienced more early adversity by age 5 had best friends with higher rates of psychopathology at age 20. Moreover, best friends' psychopathology predicted target youth depressive symptoms 2 to 5 years later. Results indicate that early adversity continues to affect social functioning throughout young adulthood and that best friendships marked by elevated psychopathology in turn negatively affect mental health. Findings have implications for clinical interventions designed to prevent the development of depressive symptoms in youth who have been exposed to early adversity.

Close Friends’ Psychopathology as a Pathway from Early Adversity to Young Adulthood Depressive Symptoms

PubMed Central

Raposa, Elizabeth; Hammen, Constance; Brennan, Patricia

2014-01-01

Objective Past research has highlighted the negative impact of early adverse experiences on childhood social functioning, including friendship selection, and later mental health. The current study explored the long-term effects of early adversity on young adults’ close friends’ psychological symptoms, and the impact of these close friendships on later depressive symptoms. Method A prospective longitudinal design was used to examine 816 youth from a large community-based sample, who were followed from birth through age 25. Participants’ mothers provided contemporaneous information about adversity exposure prior to age 5, and participants completed questionnaires about their own depressive symptoms at age 20 and in their early 20’s. Youth also nominated a best friend to complete questionnaires about their own psychopathology at age 20. Results Individuals who experienced more early adversity by age 5 had best friends with higher rates of psychopathology at age 20. Moreover, best friends’ psychopathology predicted target youth depressive symptoms two to five years later. Conclusions Results indicate that early adversity continues to affect social functioning throughout young adulthood, and that best friendships marked by elevated psychopathology in turn negatively affect mental health. Findings have implications for clinical interventions designed to prevent the development of depressive symptoms in youth who have been exposed to early adversity. PMID:24871609

The association between adverse childhood experiences and adult traumatic brain injury/concussion: a scoping review.

PubMed

Ma, Zechen; Bayley, Mark T; Perrier, Laure; Dhir, Priya; Dépatie, Lana; Comper, Paul; Ruttan, Lesley; Lay, Christine; Munce, Sarah E P

2018-01-12

Adverse childhood experiences are significant risk factors for physical and mental illnesses in adulthood. Traumatic brain injury/concussion is a challenging condition where pre-injury factors may affect recovery. The association between childhood adversity and traumatic brain injury/concussion has not been previously reviewed. The research question addressed is: What is known from the existing literature about the association between adverse childhood experiences and traumatic brain injury/concussion in adults? All original studies of any type published in English since 2007 on adverse childhood experiences and traumatic brain injury/concussion outcomes were included. The literature search was conducted in multiple electronic databases. Arksey and O'Malley and Levac et al.'s scoping review frameworks were used. Two reviewers independently completed screening and data abstraction. The review yielded six observational studies. Included studies were limited to incarcerated or homeless samples, and individuals at high-risk of or with mental illnesses. Across studies, methods for childhood adversity and traumatic brain injury/concussion assessment were heterogeneous. A positive association between adverse childhood experiences and traumatic brain injury occurrence was identified. The review highlights the importance of screening and treatment of adverse childhood experiences. Future research should extend to the general population and implications on injury recovery. Implications for rehabilitation Exposure to adverse childhood experiences is associated with increased risk of traumatic brain injury. Specific types of adverse childhood experiences associated with risk of traumatic brain injury include childhood physical abuse, psychological abuse, household member incarceration, and household member drug abuse. Clinicians and researchers should inquire about adverse childhood experiences in all people with traumatic brain injury as pre-injury health conditions can

Early Childhood Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elkind, David

In five sections, this paper explores dimensions of early childhood education: schooling generally construed as nonparental instruction in knowledge, values, and skills. Section 1 looks at some of the factors which have contributed to the rapid growth of early childhood education in modern times. Section 2 briefly highlights the contributions of…

Adverse childhood experiences and substance use among Hispanic emerging adults in Southern California.

PubMed

Allem, Jon-Patrick; Soto, Daniel W; Baezconde-Garbanati, Lourdes; Unger, Jennifer B

2015-11-01

Emerging adults who experienced stressful childhoods may engage in substance use as a maladaptive coping strategy. Given the collectivistic values Hispanics encounter growing up, adverse childhood experiences may play a prominent role in substance use decisions as these events violate the assumptions of group oriented cultural paradigms. Alternatively, adverse childhood events might not increase the risk of substance use because strong family ties could mitigate the potential maladaptive behaviors associated with these adverse experiences. This study examined whether adverse childhood experiences were associated with substance use among Hispanic emerging adults. Participants (n = 1420, mean age = 22, 41% male) completed surveys indicating whether they experienced any of 8 specific adverse experiences within their first 18 years of life, and past-month cigarette use, marijuana use, hard drug use, and binge drinking. Logistic regression models examined the associations between adverse childhood experiences and each category of substance use, controlling for age, gender, and depressive symptoms. The number of adverse childhood experiences was significantly associated with each category of substance use. A difference in the number of adverse childhood experiences, from 0 to 8, was associated with a 22% higher probability of cigarette smoking, a 24% higher probability of binge drinking, a 31% higher probability of marijuana use, and a 12% higher probability of hard drug use respectively. These findings should be integrated into prevention/intervention programs in hopes of quelling the duration and severity of substance use behaviors among Hispanic emerging adults. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adverse Childhood Experiences, Commitment Offense, and Race/Ethnicity: Are the Effects Crime-, Race-, and Ethnicity-Specific?

PubMed

DeLisi, Matt; Alcala, Justin; Kusow, Abdi; Hochstetler, Andy; Heirigs, Mark H; Caudill, Jonathan W; Trulson, Chad R; Baglivio, Michael T

2017-03-22

Adverse childhood experiences are associated with an array of health, psychiatric, and behavioral problems including antisocial behavior. Criminologists have recently utilized adverse childhood experiences as an organizing research framework and shown that adverse childhood experiences are associated with delinquency, violence, and more chronic/severe criminal careers. However, much less is known about adverse childhood experiences vis-à-vis specific forms of crime and whether the effects vary across race and ethnicity. Using a sample of 2520 male confined juvenile delinquents, the current study used epidemiological tables of odds (both unadjusted and adjusted for onset, total adjudications, and total out of home placements) to evaluate the significance of the number of adverse childhood experiences on commitment for homicide, sexual assault, and serious persons/property offending. The effects of adverse childhood experiences vary considerably across racial and ethnic groups and across offense types. Adverse childhood experiences are strongly and positively associated with sexual offending, but negatively associated with homicide and serious person/property offending. Differential effects of adverse childhood experiences were also seen among African Americans, Hispanics, and whites. Suggestions for future research to clarify the mechanisms by which adverse childhood experiences manifest in specific forms of criminal behavior are offered.

Prenatal and Early Life Exposure to Traffic Pollution and Cardiometabolic Health in Childhood

PubMed Central

Fleisch, Abby F.; Luttmann-Gibson, Heike; Perng, Wei; Rifas-Shiman, Sheryl L.; Coull, Brent A.; Kloog, Itai; Koutrakis, Petros; Schwartz, Joel D.; Zanobetti, Antonella; Mantzoros, Christos S.; Gillman, Matthew W.; Gold, Diane R.; Oken, Emily

2016-01-01

Background Prenatal exposure to traffic pollution has been associated with faster infant weight gain, but implications for cardiometabolic health in later childhood are unknown. Methods Among 1,418 children in Project Viva, a Boston-area pre-birth cohort, we assessed anthropometric and biochemical parameters of cardiometabolic health in early (median age 3.3 years) and mid- (median age 7.7 years) childhood. We used spatiotemporal models to estimate prenatal and early life residential PM2.5 and black carbon exposure as well as traffic density and roadway proximity. We performed linear regression analyses adjusted for sociodemographics Results Children whose mothers lived close to a major roadway at the time of delivery had higher markers of adverse cardiometabolic risk in early and mid-childhood. For example, total fat mass was 2.1kg (95%CI: 0.8, 3.5) higher in mid-childhood for children of mothers who lived < 50 m vs. ≥ 200m from a major roadway. Black carbon exposure and traffic density were generally not associated with cardiometabolic parameters, and PM2.5 exposure during the year prior was paradoxically associated with improved cardiometabolic profile Conclusions Infants whose mothers lived close to a major roadway at the time of delivery may be at later risk for adverse cardiometabolic health. PMID:26843357

Reframing Early Childhood Leadership

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stamopoulos, Elizabeth

2012-01-01

Rapid changes in Australian education have intensified the role of early childhood leaders and led to unprecedented challenges. The Australian Curriculum (ACARA, 2011), mandated Australian "National Quality Framework" (NQF) for Early Childhood Education & Care (DEEWR, 2010b) and the "National Early Years Learning Framework"…

Human Trafficking of Minors and Childhood Adversity in Florida.

PubMed

Reid, Joan A; Baglivio, Michael T; Piquero, Alex R; Greenwald, Mark A; Epps, Nathan

2017-02-01

To examine the link between human trafficking of minors and childhood adversity. We compared the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and cumulative childhood adversity (ACE score) among a sample of 913 juvenile justice-involved boys and girls in Florida for whom the Florida child abuse hotline accepted human trafficking abuse reports between 2009 and 2015 with those of a matched sample. ACE composite scores were higher and 6 ACEs indicative of child maltreatment were more prevalent among youths who had human trafficking abuse reports. Sexual abuse was the strongest predictor of human trafficking: the odds of human trafficking was 2.52 times greater for girls who experienced sexual abuse, and there was a 8.21 times greater risk for boys who had histories of sexual abuse. Maltreated youths are more susceptible to exploitation in human trafficking. Sexual abuse in connection with high ACE scores may serve as a key predictor of exploitation in human trafficking for both boys and girls.

Life course pathways of adverse childhood experiences toward adult psychological well-being: A stress process analysis.

PubMed

Nurius, Paula S; Green, Sara; Logan-Greene, Patricia; Borja, Sharon

2015-07-01

Growing evidence suggests that toxic stressors early in life not only convey developmental impacts but also augment risk of proliferating chains of additional stressors that can overwhelm individual coping and undermine recovery and health. Examining trauma within a life course stress process perspective, we posit that early childhood adversity carries a unique capacity to impair adult psychological well-being both independent of and cumulative with other contributors, including social disadvantage and stressful adult experiences. This study uses data from a representative population-based health survey (N=13,593) to provide one of the first multivariate assessments of unique, cumulative, and moderated effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) toward explaining 3 related yet distinct measures of adult mental health: perceived well-being, psychological distress, and impaired daily activities. Results demonstrate support for each set of hypothesized associations, including exacerbation and amelioration of ACEs effects by adult stress and resilience resources, respectively. Implications for services and future research are discussed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Life Course Pathways of Adverse Childhood Experiences Toward Adult Psychological Well-Being: A Stress Process Analysis

PubMed Central

Nurius, Paula S.; Green, Sara; Logan-Greene, Patricia; Borja, Sharon

2015-01-01

Growing evidence suggests that toxic stressors early in life not only convey developmental impacts but also augment risk of proliferating chains of additional stressors that can overwhelm individual coping and undermine recovery and health. Examining trauma within a life course stress process perspective, we posit that early childhood adversity carries a unique capacity to impair adult psychological well-being both independent of and cumulative with other contributors, including social disadvantage and stressful adult experiences. This study uses data from a representative population-based health survey (N = 13,593) to provide one of the first multivariate assessments of unique, cumulative, and moderated effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) toward explaining 3 related yet distinct measures of adult mental health: perceived well-being, psychological distress, and impaired daily activities. Results demonstrate support for each set of hypothesized associations, including exacerbation and amelioration of ACEs effects by adult stress and resilience resources, respectively. Implications for services and future research are discussed. PMID:25846195

Childhood adversity profiles and adult psychopathology in a representative Northern Ireland study.

PubMed

McLafferty, Margaret; Armour, Cherie; McKenna, Aine; O'Neill, Siobhan; Murphy, Sam; Bunting, Brendan

2015-10-01

Childhood adversities are key aetiological factors in the onset and persistence of psychopathology. The aims of this study were to identify childhood adversity profiles, and investigate the relationship between the adversity classes and psychopathology in Northern Ireland. The study utilized data from the Northern Ireland Study of Health and Stress, an epidemiological survey (N=1986), which used the CIDI to examine mental health disorders and associated risk factors. Latent Class Analysis revealed 3 distinct typologies; a low risk class (n=1709; 86%), a poly-adversity class (n=122; 6.1%), and an economic adversity class (n=155; 7.8%). Logistic Regression models revealed that individuals in the economic adversity class had a heightened risk of anxiety and substance disorders, with individuals in the poly-adversity class more likely to have a range of mental health problems and suicidality. The findings indicate the importance of considering the impact of co-occurring childhood adversities when planning treatment, prevention, and intervention programmes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The lasting legacy of childhood adversity for disease risk in later life.

PubMed

McCrory, Cathal; Dooley, Cara; Layte, Richard; Kenny, Rose Anne

2015-07-01

There has been an increased interest in the role of the childhood social environment in the etiology of adult diseases in recent years. The present study examines whether the experience of adversity during childhood increases risk for disease in later life independent of later life socioeconomic, behavioral, and psychosocial factors. The study involved a nationally representative sample of 6,912 persons aged 50 years and older who were participating in the first wave of the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing. Childhood adversity was indexed using a 4-item measure that captured challenging and potentially noxious childhood environmental exposures including, socioeconomic disadvantage, substance abuse among parents, physical abuse, and sexual abuse. A doctor diagnosis of disease across 9 chronic disease types represented the primary outcome variables. The experience of adversity during childhood was associated with increased risk of disease in midlife and older ages across a large number of chronic disease types including cardiovascular disease, lung disease, and emotional, nervous, or psychiatric disorders. Analysis of the dose-response pattern revealed positively graded associations between the number of adverse events experienced during childhood and the occurrence of chronic disease in later life. Cox proportional hazard models revealed that the experience of adversity during childhood was associated with earlier age of onset for any physical disease type or emotional, nervous, or psychiatric disorders. These findings indicate that childhood may represent a sensitive or critical period in the development of disease and reinforces the necessity of adopting a life-course approach to the study of chronic diseases. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

Latent Classes and Cumulative Impacts of Adverse Childhood Experiences.

PubMed

Barboza, Gia Elise

2018-05-01

Studies of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have gauged severity using a cumulative risk (CR) index. Few studies have focused on the nature of the context of adversity and their association with psychosocial outcomes. The objective of this study was to examine the patterning of ACEs and to explore the resultant patterns' association with HIV risk-taking, problem drinking, and depressive symptoms in adulthood. Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify homogeneous, mutually exclusive "classes" of 11 of the most commonly used ACEs. The LCA resulted in four high-risk profiles and one low-risk profile, which were labeled: (1) highly abusive and dysfunctional (3.3%; n = 1,983), (2) emotionally abusive alcoholic with parental conflict (6%, n = 3,303), (3) sexual abuse only (4.3%, n = 2,260), (4) emotionally abusive and alcoholic (30.3%, n = 17,460), and (5) normative, low risk (56.3%, n = 32,950). Compared to the low-risk class, each high-risk profile was differentially associated with adult psychosocial outcomes even when the conditional CR within that class was similar. The results further our understanding about the pattern of ACEs and the unique pathways to poor health. Implications for child welfare systems when dealing with individuals who have experienced multiple forms of early childhood maltreatment and/or household dysfunction are discussed.

Suicidality in male prisoners: influence of childhood adversity mediated by dimensions of personality.

PubMed

Godet-Mardirossian, Hélène; Jehel, Louis; Falissard, Bruno

2011-07-01

This study aims to study the influence of childhood adversity on suicidal behavior in male prisoners. Including a random sample of 899 male prisoners (French National Mental Health Prison Survey, 2003), this paper studied suicidal ideations and suicide attempts using MINI criteria, and personality using Temperament and Character Inventory. Risk factors of suicidality were examined, and structural equations studied the influence of childhood trauma on suicidality, mediated by personality dimensions. The prisoners reported high levels of childhood adversity. More than a third reported recent suicidal ideations. Childhood adversity and dimensions of personality were associated with suicidality. Structural equations showed that childhood adversity was positively associated with suicidality, mediated by poor dimensions of character (affective stability, self-cooperativeness, and self-transcendence). In conclusion, these results confirm the importance of screening and treatment of childhood trauma among male prisoners. They suggest the importance to study dimensions of personality and tailor treatment to specific needs. © 2011 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Long Term Physical Health Consequences of Adverse Childhood Experiences

PubMed Central

Monnat, Shannon M.; Chandler, Raeven Faye

2015-01-01

This study examined associations between adverse childhood family experiences and adult physical health using data from 52,250 US adults aged 18–64 from the 2009–2012 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). We found that experiencing childhood physical, verbal, or sexual abuse, witnessing parental domestic violence, experiencing parental divorce, and living with someone who was depressed, abused drugs or alcohol, or who had been incarcerated were associated with one or more of the following health outcomes: self-rated health, functional limitations, diabetes, and heart attack. Adult socioeconomic status and poor mental health and health behaviors significantly mediated several of these associations. The results of this study highlight the importance of family-based adverse childhood experiences on adult health outcomes and suggest that adult SES and stress-related coping behaviors may be crucial links between trauma in the childhood home and adult health. PMID:26500379

Interaction between childhood adversity and functional polymorphisms in the dopamine pathway on first-episode psychosis.

PubMed

Trotta, Antonella; Iyegbe, Conrad; Yiend, Jenny; Dazzan, Paola; David, Anthony S; Pariante, Carmine; Mondelli, Valeria; Colizzi, Marco; Murray, Robin M; Di Forti, Marta; Fisher, Helen L

2018-04-10

There is consistent evidence of a cumulative relationship between childhood adversity and psychosis, with number of adversities experienced increasing the probability of psychosis onset. It is possible that genetic factors moderate the association between childhood adversity and psychosis, potentially by influencing how an individual reacts biologically and/or psychologically following exposure to adversity, in such a way as to set them off on the path to psychosis. However, identifying the specific genetic variants involved and how they interact with childhood adversity remains challenging. We examined whether the association between cumulative exposure to childhood adversity and development of psychotic disorder was moderated by the COMT Val 158 Met, AKT1 rs2494732 or DRD2 rs1076560 polymorphisms, known to affect dopamine levels. Participants were 285 first-presentation psychosis cases and 256 geographically-matched controls drawn from the Genetics and Psychosis (GAP) study. Childhood adversity was assessed using the Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse Questionnaire (CECA.Q) and blood- and cheek-derived genotype data were collected. Our findings revealed no main effect of COMT Val 158 Met, AKT1 rs2494732 and DRD2 rs1076560 polymorphisms on psychosis case status or reports of childhood adversity. Individuals reporting a history of multiple adversities were more likely to be psychosis patients than controls, regardless of their genetic risk. There was no evidence of candidate genotype by childhood adversity interactions in relation to psychosis onset. These findings did not provide evidence of a possible role of COMT Val 158 Met, AKT1 rs2494732 or DRD2 rs1076560 genotypes in modifying the association between childhood adversity and onset of psychosis. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Early Socioeconomic Adversity and Young Adult Physical Illness: The Role of Body Mass Index and Depressive Symptoms

PubMed Central

Wickrama, K. A. S.; Kwon, Josephine A.; Oshri, Assaf; Lee, Tae Kyoung

2014-01-01

Purpose The present study investigated the psycho-physiological inter and intra-individual processes that mediate the linkage between childhood/adolescent socioeconomic adversities and adult health outcomes. Specifically, the proposed model examined the roles of youth depressive symptoms and BMI trajectories as mediators that explain the link between early adversity and young adults’ general health and physical illnesses after controlling for gender, race/ethnicity, and earlier general health reports. Methods Using a nationally representative sample of 12,424 from National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), this study used growth curve modeling to consider both the severity (initial level) as well as the change over time (deterioration or elevation) as psycho-physiological mediators, thereby acknowledging multiple facets of depressive symptoms and BMI trajectories as psych-physiological mediators of early adversity to adult health. Results Results provide evidence for (a) the influence of early childhood and early adolescent cumulative socioeconomic adversity on both the initial levels and changes over time of depressive symptoms and BMI and (b) the independent influences depressive symptoms and BMI trajectories on the general health and the physical illnesses of young adults Conclusions These findings contribute valuable knowledge to existing research by elucidating how early adversity exerts an enduring long-term influence on physical health problems in young adulthood; further, this information suggests effective intervention and prevention programs should incorporate multiple facets (severity and change over time) of multiple mechanisms (psychological and physiological). PMID:24856408

Early Childhood Systems: Transforming Early Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kagan, Sharon Lynn, Ed.; Kauertz, Kristie, Ed.

2012-01-01

In this seminal volume, leading authorities strategize about how to create early childhood systems that transcend politics and economics to serve the needs of all young children. The authors offer different interpretations of the nature of early childhood systems, discuss the elements necessary to support their development, and examine how…

Childhood adversity and personality disorders: results from a nationally representative population-based study.

PubMed

Afifi, Tracie O; Mather, Amber; Boman, Jonathon; Fleisher, William; Enns, Murray W; Macmillan, Harriet; Sareen, Jitender

2011-06-01

Although, a large population-based literature exists on the relationship between childhood adversity and Axis I mental disorders, research on the link between childhood adversity and Axis II personality disorders (PDs) relies mainly on clinical samples. The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between a range of childhood adversities and PDs in a nationally representative sample while adjusting for Axis I mental disorders. Data were from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC; n=34,653; data collection 2004-2005); a nationally representative sample of the United States population aged 20 years and older. The results indicated that many types of childhood adversity were highly prevalent among individuals with PDs in the general population and childhood adversity was most consistently associated with schizotypal, antisocial, borderline, and narcissistic PDs. The most robust childhood adversity findings were for child abuse and neglect with cluster A and cluster B PDs after adjusting for all other types of childhood adversity, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, substance use disorders, other PD clusters, and sociodemographic variables (Odd Ratios ranging from 1.22 to 1.63). In these models, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and substance use disorders also remained significantly associated with PD clusters (Odds Ratios ranging from 1.26 to 2.38). Further research is necessary to understand whether such exposure has a causal role in the association with PDs. In addition to preventing child maltreatment, it is important to determine ways to prevent impairment among those exposed to adversity, as this may reduce the development of PDs. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adverse Childhood Experiences, Commitment Offense, and Race/Ethnicity: Are the Effects Crime-, Race-, and Ethnicity-Specific?

PubMed Central

DeLisi, Matt; Alcala, Justin; Kusow, Abdi; Hochstetler, Andy; Heirigs, Mark H.; Caudill, Jonathan W.; Trulson, Chad R.; Baglivio, Michael T.

2017-01-01

Adverse childhood experiences are associated with an array of health, psychiatric, and behavioral problems including antisocial behavior. Criminologists have recently utilized adverse childhood experiences as an organizing research framework and shown that adverse childhood experiences are associated with delinquency, violence, and more chronic/severe criminal careers. However, much less is known about adverse childhood experiences vis-à-vis specific forms of crime and whether the effects vary across race and ethnicity. Using a sample of 2520 male confined juvenile delinquents, the current study used epidemiological tables of odds (both unadjusted and adjusted for onset, total adjudications, and total out of home placements) to evaluate the significance of the number of adverse childhood experiences on commitment for homicide, sexual assault, and serious persons/property offending. The effects of adverse childhood experiences vary considerably across racial and ethnic groups and across offense types. Adverse childhood experiences are strongly and positively associated with sexual offending, but negatively associated with homicide and serious person/property offending. Differential effects of adverse childhood experiences were also seen among African Americans, Hispanics, and whites. Suggestions for future research to clarify the mechanisms by which adverse childhood experiences manifest in specific forms of criminal behavior are offered. PMID:28327508

Impact of early psychosocial factors (childhood socioeconomic factors and adversities) on future risk of type 2 diabetes, metabolic disturbances and obesity: a systematic review

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Psychological factors and socioeconomic status (SES) have a notable impact on health disparities, including type 2 diabetes risk. However, the link between childhood psychosocial factors, such as childhood adversities or parental SES, and metabolic disturbances is less well established. In addition, the lifetime perspective including adult socioeconomic factors remains of further interest. We carried out a systematic review with the main question if there is evidence in population- or community-based studies that childhood adversities (like neglect, traumata and deprivation) have considerable impact on type 2 diabetes incidence and other metabolic disturbances. Also, parental SES was included in the search as risk factor for both, diabetes and adverse childhood experiences. Finally, we assumed that obesity might be a mediator for the association of childhood adversities with diabetes incidence. Therefore, we carried out a second review on obesity, applying a similar search strategy. Methods Two systematic reviews were carried out. Longitudinal, population- or community-based studies were included if they contained data on psychosocial factors in childhood and either diabetes incidence or obesity risk. Results We included ten studies comprising a total of 200,381 individuals. Eight out of ten studies indicated that low parental status was associated with type 2 diabetes incidence or the development of metabolic abnormalities. Adjustment for adult SES and obesity tended to attenuate the childhood SES-attributable risk but the association remained. For obesity, eleven studies were included with a total sample size of 70,420 participants. Four out of eleven studies observed an independent association of low childhood SES on the risk for overweight and obesity later in life. Conclusions Taken together, there is evidence that childhood SES is associated with type 2 diabetes and obesity in later life. The database on the role of psychological factors such as

Poor mental health among low-income women in the U.S.: The roles of adverse childhood and adult experiences.

PubMed

Mersky, Joshua P; Janczewski, Colleen E; Nitkowski, Jenna C

2018-06-01

It is well established that exposure to a greater number of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) increases the risk of poor physical and mental health outcomes. Given the predictive validity of ACE scores and other cumulative risk metrics, a similar measurement approach may advance the study of risk in adulthood. We examined the prevalence and interrelations of 10 adverse adult experiences, including household events such as intimate partner violence and extrafamilial events such as crime victimization. We also tested the relation between cumulative adult adversity and later mental health problems, and we examined whether adult adversity mediates the link between childhood adversity and mental health. Data were collected from 501 women in the Families and Children Thriving Study, a longitudinal investigation of low-income families that received home visiting services in Wisconsin. We conducted correlation analyses to assess interrelations among study measures along with multivariate analyses to test the effects of childhood and adult adversity on three outcomes: depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We then fit a structural equation model to test whether the effects of childhood adversity on mental health are mediated by adult adversity. Over 80% of participants endorsed at least one adverse adult experience. Adult adversities correlated with each other and with the mental health outcomes. Controlling for ACEs and model covariates, adult adversity scores were positively associated with depression, anxiety, and PTSD scores. Path analyses revealed that the ACE-mental health connection was mediated by adult adversity. Our findings indicate that mental health problems may be better understood by accounting for processes through which early adversity leads to later adversity. Pending replication, this line of research has the potential to improve the identification of populations that are at risk of poor health outcomes. Copyright © 2018

Associations of adverse childhood experiences with depression and alcohol abuse among Korean college students.

PubMed

Kim, Yeon Ha

2017-05-01

This study investigated adverse childhood experiences of Korean college students and the impact such experiences have on students' depression and alcohol abuse. Using an online questionnaire, 939 college students were surveyed regarding their adverse childhood experiences, depressive symptoms and alcohol use habits. About half of the participants claimed to have experienced at least one adversity in their childhood. Eight percent of participants reported experiencing four or more categories of adversity. The correlations between adverse childhood experiences and depressive symptoms, alcohol abusive behaviors, and the comorbid condition of the two outcomes were significant when students' gender, geographical regions, maternal and paternal education, and family incomes were adjusted. Graded associations of cumulated adverse childhood experiences with the outcome variables were evident. These findings strengthen the link between child maltreatment and adult public health issues carrying socioeconomic burdens, two matters that have not been extensively studied in Korean contexts. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Developmental psychoneuroendocrine and psychoneuroimmune pathways from childhood adversity to disease.

PubMed

Kuhlman, Kate Ryan; Chiang, Jessica J; Horn, Sarah; Bower, Julienne E

2017-09-01

Childhood adversity has been repeatedly and robustly linked to physical and mental illness across the lifespan. Yet, the biological pathways through which this occurs remain unclear. Functioning of the inflammatory arm of the immune system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis are both hypothesized pathways through which childhood adversity leads to disease. This review provides a novel developmental framework for examining the role of adversity type and timing in inflammatory and HPA-axis functioning. In particular, we identify elements of childhood adversity that are salient to the developing organism: physical threat, disrupted caregiving, and unpredictable environmental conditions. We propose that existing, well-characterized animal models may be useful in differentiating the effects of these adversity elements and review both the animal and human literature that supports these ideas. To support these hypotheses, we also provide a detailed description of the development and structure of both the HPA-axis and the inflammatory arm of the immune system, as well as recent methodological advances in their measurement. Recommendations for future basic, developmental, translational, and clinical research are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The experience of adverse childhood experiences and dental care in childhood.

PubMed

Crouch, Elizabeth; Radcliff, Elizabeth; Nelson, Joni; Strompolis, Melissa; Martin, Amy

2018-06-06

Routine preventive dental care is important to overall child health and well-being. However, the experience of adversity in childhood may prevent children from getting adequate preventive care. This study seeks to explore how the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and the role of a protective adult may be associated with dental care utilization in childhood. Data from the 2016 South Carolina Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (SC BRFSS), which interviews adults eighteen year of age and older, were used in this study. Dental care utilization in childhood was measured as the adult retrospectively reported frequency of dental care in childhood: at least once every 2 years (adequate dental care) or less often than every 2 years (inadequate dental care). ACEs were determined by asking about each of respondent's childhood exposure to eleven childhood experiences, including divorce, parental incarceration, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse, mental illness and emotional, physical or sexual abuse. The presence of a protective adult in childhood included respondents who had an adult who made them feel safe and protected during childhood. Descriptive and bivariate statistics explored differences in the adequacy of child dental care by ACE exposure, the presence of a protective adult and selected demographic characteristics. Multivariate regression models were used to examine the impact of counts and types of ACEs and the presence of a protective adult with inadequate childhood dental care. The unweighted study sample included 7079 respondents ageing from 18 to 79 years of age Sampling weights were used for all analyses. Among all respondents, 71.7% reported receiving adequate dental care during childhood; 28.3% responded that they received inadequate dental care. Adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, respondents who experienced four or more ACEs had a higher likelihood of inadequate dental care than respondents who reported no ACEs

Pathways between childhood/adolescent adversity, adolescent socioeconomic status, and long-term cardiovascular disease risk in young adulthood.

PubMed

Doom, Jenalee R; Mason, Susan M; Suglia, Shakira F; Clark, Cari Jo

2017-09-01

The current study investigated mediators between childhood/adolescent adversities (e.g., dating violence, maltreatment, homelessness, and parental death), low socioeconomic status (SES) during adolescence, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in young adulthood. The purpose of these analyses was to understand whether SES during adolescence and childhood/adolescent adversities affect CVD risk through similar pathways, including maternal relationship quality, health behaviors, financial stress, medical/dental care, educational attainment, sleep problems, and depressive symptoms. Using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 14,493), which has followed US adolescents (Wave 1; M = 15.9 years) through early adulthood (Wave 4; M = 28.9 years), associations were examined between childhood/adolescent adversity and SES to 30-year CVD risk in young adulthood. The outcome was a Framingham-based prediction model of CVD risk that included age, sex, body mass index, smoking, systolic blood pressure, diabetes, and antihypertensive medication use at Wave 4. Path analysis was used to examine paths through the adolescent maternal relationship to young adult mediators of CVD risk. Childhood/adolescent adversity significantly predicted greater adult CVD risk through the following pathways: maternal relationship, health behaviors, financial stress, lack of medical/dental care, and educational attainment; but not through depressive symptoms or sleep problems. Lower SES during adolescence significantly predicted greater adult CVD risk through the following pathways: health behaviors, financial stress, lack of medical/dental care, and educational attainment, but not maternal relationship, depressive symptoms, or sleep problems. Childhood/adolescent adversities and SES affected CVD risk in young adulthood through both similar and unique pathways that may inform interventions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The moderating impact of childhood adversity profiles and conflict on psychological health and suicidal behaviour in the Northern Ireland population.

PubMed

McLafferty, Margaret; O'Neill, Siobhan; Murphy, Sam; Armour, Cherie; Ferry, Finola; Bunting, Brendan

2018-04-01

Childhood adversities are key etiological factors in the onset and persistence of psychopathology. In Northern Ireland the Troubles also impacted on the population's psychological health. This study used data from the Northern Ireland Study of Health and Stress a collaborative epidemiological study which used the WMH-CIDI to assess mental health disorders in a nationally representative sample (Part 2, n = 1986). The aims of the study were to assess co-occurrences of childhood adversities and investigate the impact of adversity profiles and conflict experience on psychopathology and suicidal behaviour. Latent Class Analysis uncovered 3 discrete childhood adversity profiles, a low, medium, and high risk class. Individuals from higher risk adversity profiles displayed significantly increased odds of having psychological problems, with conflict exposure also impacting on psychopathology. However, the study revealed that the impact of conflict exposure on suicidal behaviour was moderated by latent class membership and that some adversity may actually be protective. The findings highlight the need to consider that, while adversity can have a negative impact on psychopathology, a lack of adversity early in life may hinder some people from developing adequate coping strategies. Further research is required to identify adversity patterns and other interacting factors that are protective. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Like Father, like Child: Early Life Family Adversity and Children's Bullying Behaviors in Elementary School.

PubMed

de Vries, Else E; Verlinden, Marina; Rijlaarsdam, Jolien; Jaddoe, Vincent W V; Verhulst, Frank C; Arseneault, Louise; Tiemeier, Henning

2017-12-19

Family adversity has been associated with children's bullying behaviors. The evidence is, however, dominated by mothers' perceptions of the family environment and a focus on mothers' behaviors. This prospective population-based study examined whether children's bullying behaviors were associated with mother- and father-reported family adversity, assessed before and after child birth. Peer-nominations were used to assess bullying behaviors of 1298 children in elementary school (mean age 7.5 years). The following paternal risk factors were prospectively associated with children's bullying behaviors: (1) father-reported prenatal family distress, (2) fathers' hostility at preschool age, and (3) fathers' harsh disciplinary practices at preschool age, but effect sizes were relatively small. The effect of maternal risk factors was less consistent, only mother-reported family distress in childhood was associated with children's bullying behaviors. The associations were independent of background family risk factors (i.e., life stress, contextual factors, and other background factors such as parental education and risk taking record) and early childhood externalizing problems. Moreover, our results indicated that father-reported family adversity predicted children's bullying behaviors over and above the background family risk factors, early childhood externalizing problems and mother-reported family adversity. We also demonstrated that the association of fathers' prenatal hostility and family distress with subsequent bullying behavior of their child at school was partly mediated by fathers' harsh disciplinary practices at preschool age. Our findings highlight the importance of fathers' behaviors in the development of children's bullying behaviors.

Clarifying Parent-Child Reciprocities during Early Childhood: The Early Childhood Coercion Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scaramella, Laura V.; Leve, Leslie D.

2004-01-01

Consistent with existing theory, the quality of parent-child interactions during early childhood affects children's social relationships and behavioral adjustment during middle childhood and adolescence. Harsh parenting and a propensity toward emotional overarousal interact very early in life to affect risk for later conduct problems. Less…

Interpersonal Callousness from Childhood to Adolescence: Developmental Trajectories and Early Risk Factors.

PubMed

Byrd, Amy L; Hawes, Samuel W; Loeber, Rolf; Pardini, Dustin A

2018-01-01

Youth with a callous interpersonal style, consistent with features of adult psychopathy (e.g., lack of guilt, deceitful), are at risk for exhibiting severe and protracted antisocial behaviors. However, no studies have examined changes that occur in interpersonal callousness (IC) from childhood to adolescence, and little is known about the influence of early child, social, and contextual factors on trajectories of IC. The current study examined distinct patterns of IC across childhood and adolescence and associations with early risk factors. Participants were an at-risk sample of 503 boys (56% African American) assessed annually from around ages 7-15. Analyses examined child (anger dysregulation, fearfulness), social (peer, family, maltreatment), and contextual (psychosocial adversity) factors associated with teacher-reported IC trajectories across childhood and adolescence. Using latent class growth analysis, five trajectories of IC were identified (early-onset chronic, childhood-limited, adolescent-onset, moderate, low). Approximately 10% of boys followed an early-onset chronic trajectory, and a roughly equal percent of youth followed childhood-limited trajectory (10%) or an adolescent-onset trajectory (12%) of IC across development. Specifically, half of the boys with high IC in childhood did not continue to exhibit significant levels of these features into adolescence, whereas an equal proportion of youth with low IC in childhood demonstrated increasing levels during the transition to adolescence. Boys in the early-onset chronic group were characterized by the most risk factors and were differentiated from those with childhood-limited and adolescent-onset IC only by higher conduct problems, fearlessness, and emotional abuse/neglect. Findings are discussed in terms of developmental models of IC and several avenues for early targeted interventions.

Early childhood adversity, toxic stress, and the role of the pediatrician: translating developmental science into lifelong health.

PubMed

Garner, Andrew S; Shonkoff, Jack P

2012-01-01

Advances in a wide range of biological, behavioral, and social sciences are expanding our understanding of how early environmental influences (the ecology) and genetic predispositions (the biologic program) affect learning capacities, adaptive behaviors, lifelong physical and mental health, and adult productivity. A supporting technical report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) presents an integrated ecobiodevelopmental framework to assist in translating these dramatic advances in developmental science into improved health across the life span. Pediatricians are now armed with new information about the adverse effects of toxic stress on brain development, as well as a deeper understanding of the early life origins of many adult diseases. As trusted authorities in child health and development, pediatric providers must now complement the early identification of developmental concerns with a greater focus on those interventions and community investments that reduce external threats to healthy brain growth. To this end, AAP endorses a developing leadership role for the entire pediatric community-one that mobilizes the scientific expertise of both basic and clinical researchers, the family-centered care of the pediatric medical home, and the public influence of AAP and its state chapters-to catalyze fundamental change in early childhood policy and services. AAP is committed to leveraging science to inform the development of innovative strategies to reduce the precipitants of toxic stress in young children and to mitigate their negative effects on the course of development and health across the life span.

Adverse childhood event experiences, fertility difficulties and menstrual cycle characteristics.

PubMed

Jacobs, Marni B; Boynton-Jarrett, Renee D; Harville, Emily W

2015-01-01

Increased childhood adversity may be affect adult fertility, however, the mechanism through which this occurs is unclear. Menstrual cycle abnormalities are predictive of fertility difficulties, and stress influences menstrual cycle characteristics. Here, we assess whether adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with fertility difficulties and menstrual cycle dysregulation, offering a plausible mechanism for the link between lifetime stress and fertility. From April 2012 to February 2014, 742 pregnant and non-pregnant women aged 18-45 years residing in southeastern Louisiana provided information on childhood adversity and reproductive history. Associations between ACEs and fertility difficulties and menstrual cycle patterns were evaluated. As the number of ACEs increased, risk of fertility difficulties and amenorrhea increased (RR = 1.09, 95% CI 1.05-1.13 and RR = 1.07, 95% CI 1.04-1.10, respectively), while fecundability decreased [fecundability ratio (FR) = 0.97, 95% CI 0.95-1.00]. Compared to women with no adversity, women in the high adversity group were more likely to experience both infertility and amenorrhea (RR = 2.75, 95% CI 1.45-5.21 and RR = 2.54, 95% CI 1.52-4.25, respectively), and reduced fecundability (FR = 0.75, 95% CI 0.56-1.00). Although similar patterns were seen for menstrual cycle irregularity, associations were diminished. Associations did not materially change following adjustment for age, body mass index, race, education, smoking and income. Results are constrained by the self-report nature of the study and the limited generalizability of the study population. To our knowledge, this is the first study to present evidence of a link between childhood stressors, menstrual cycle disruption and fertility difficulties. The effect of childhood stress on fertility may be mediated through altered functioning of the HPA axis, acting to suppress fertility in response to less than optimal reproductive circumstances.

Correlates of adverse childhood experiences among adults with severe mood disorders.

PubMed

Lu, Weili; Mueser, Kim T; Rosenberg, Stanley D; Jankowski, Mary Kay

2008-09-01

Adverse childhood experiences have been found to be associated with poor physical and poor mental health, impaired functioning, and increased substance abuse in the general adult population. The purpose of this study was to examine the clinical correlates of these experiences among adults with severe mood disorders. Adverse childhood experiences (including physical abuse, sexual abuse, parental mental illness, loss of parent, parental separation or divorce, witnessing domestic violence, and placement in foster or kinship care) were assessed retrospectively in a sample of 254 adults with major mood disorders. The relationships between cumulative exposure to these experiences and psychiatric problems, health, substance use disorders, community functioning, trauma exposure in adulthood, and high-risk behaviors were examined. Increased exposure to childhood adverse experiences was related to high-risk behaviors, diagnosis of a substance use disorder, exposure to trauma in adulthood, psychiatric problems (younger age at first hospitalization, number of suicide attempts, and diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder), medical service utilization, and homelessness. The findings extend research in the general population by suggesting that adverse childhood experiences contribute to worse mental and physical health and functional outcomes among adults with severe mood disorders.

Contemporary Perspectives on Early Childhood Curriculum. Contemporary Perspectives in Early Childhood Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saracho, Olivia N. Ed.; Spodek, Bernard, Ed.

Noting that the curriculum in early childhood education is dramatically different from that at other levels of education, this volume seeks to clarify some of the issues related to early childhood curriculum development and its bases in both personal knowledge and knowledge from the different disciplines to achieve a "balanced curriculum."…

Indicators of Access to Early Childhood Services in the Mississippi Delta. Rural Early Childhood Report No. 5

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shores, Elizabeth F.; Barbaro, Erin; Barbaro, Michael C.; Flenner, Michelle; Bell, Lynn

2007-01-01

The Early Childhood Atlas facilitates spatial analysis in early childhood services research for the promotion of greater quality and accessibility of early care and education. The Atlas team collects and geocodes federal, state and nongovernmental datasets about early childhood services, integrating selected data elements into its online mapmaking…

Separate and cumulative effects of adverse childhood experiences in predicting adult health and health care utilization.

PubMed

Chartier, Mariette J; Walker, John R; Naimark, Barbara

2010-06-01

Objectives of this population-based study were: (1) to examine the relative contribution of childhood abuse and other adverse childhood experiences to poor adult health and increased health care utilization and (2) to examine the cumulative effects of adverse childhood experiences on adult health and health care utilization. Data from the Ontario Health Survey, a representative population sample (n=9,953) of respondents aged 15 years and older, were analyzed using logistic regression. Adverse childhood experiences examined were childhood physical and sexual abuse, parental marital conflict, poor parent-child relationship, low parental education and parental psychopathology. Most (72%) respondents reported at least one adverse childhood experience and a considerable proportion of respondents (37%) reported two or more of these experiences. In examining the bivariate models, childhood physical and sexual abuse had a stronger influence than other types of adverse childhood experiences. With the addition of other adverse childhood experiences in the model, the odds ratios for childhood abuse were attenuated but remained statistically significant for most health outcomes. This suggests that childhood abuse may have a unique adverse influence on the development of poor adult health. When an aggregate variable was created to explore the cumulative effects of adverse childhood experience, the odds were increased, with each additional experience, for reporting multiple health problems [odds ratio (OR): 1.22], poor self-rated health (OR: 1.18), pain (OR: 1.24), disability (OR: 1.24), general practitioner use (OR: 1.12), emergency room use (OR: 1.29) and health professional use (OR: 1.19). This study suggests that childhood abuse and other adverse childhood experiences are overlapping risk factors for long-term adult health problems and that the accumulation of these adverse experiences increases the risk of poor adult health. This study highlights the importance of the many

Early adolescent adversity inflates threat estimation in females and promotes alcohol use initiation in both sexes.

PubMed

Walker, Rachel A; Andreansky, Christopher; Ray, Madelyn H; McDannald, Michael A

2018-06-01

Childhood adversity is associated with exaggerated threat processing and earlier alcohol use initiation. Conclusive links remain elusive, as childhood adversity typically co-occurs with detrimental socioeconomic factors, and its impact is likely moderated by biological sex. To unravel the complex relationships among childhood adversity, sex, threat estimation, and alcohol use initiation, we exposed female and male Long-Evans rats to early adolescent adversity (EAA). In adulthood, >50 days following the last adverse experience, threat estimation was assessed using a novel fear discrimination procedure in which cues predict a unique probability of footshock: danger (p = 1.00), uncertainty (p = .25), and safety (p = .00). Alcohol use initiation was assessed using voluntary access to 20% ethanol, >90 days following the last adverse experience. During development, EAA slowed body weight gain in both females and males. In adulthood, EAA selectively inflated female threat estimation, exaggerating fear to uncertainty and safety, but promoted alcohol use initiation across sexes. Meaningful relationships between threat estimation and alcohol use initiation were not observed, underscoring the independent effects of EAA. Results isolate the contribution of EAA to adult threat estimation, alcohol use initiation, and reveal moderation by biological sex. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Neurodevelopmental consequences of pediatric cancer and its treatment: applying an early adversity framework to understanding cognitive, behavioral, and emotional outcomes.

PubMed

Marusak, Hilary A; Iadipaolo, Allesandra S; Harper, Felicity W; Elrahal, Farrah; Taub, Jeffrey W; Goldberg, Elimelech; Rabinak, Christine A

2018-06-01

Today, children are surviving pediatric cancer at unprecedented rates, making it one of modern medicine's true success stories. However, we are increasingly becoming aware of several deleterious effects of cancer and the subsequent "cure" that extend beyond physical sequelae. Indeed, survivors of childhood cancer commonly report cognitive, emotional, and psychological difficulties, including attentional difficulties, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). Cognitive late- and long-term effects have been largely attributed to neurotoxic effects of cancer treatments (e.g., chemotherapy, cranial irradiation, surgery) on brain development. The role of childhood adversity in pediatric cancer - namely, the presence of a life-threatening disease and endurance of invasive medical procedures - has been largely ignored in the existing neuroscientific literature, despite compelling research by our group and others showing that exposure to more commonly studied adverse childhood experiences (i.e., domestic and community violence, physical, sexual, and emotional abuse) strongly imprints on neural development. While these adverse childhood experiences are different in many ways from the experience of childhood cancer (e.g., context, nature, source), they do share a common element of exposure to threat (i.e., threat to life or physical integrity). Therefore, we argue that the double hit of early threat and cancer treatments likely alters neural development, and ultimately, cognitive, behavioral, and emotional outcomes. In this paper, we (1) review the existing neuroimaging research on child, adolescent, and adult survivors of childhood cancer, (2) summarize gaps in our current understanding, (3) propose a novel neurobiological framework that characterizes childhood cancer as a type of childhood adversity, particularly a form of early threat, focusing on development of the hippocampus and the salience and emotion network (SEN), and (4) outline future directions for

Eco-Early Childhood Education: A New Paradigm of Early Childhood Education in South Korea

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Eunju; Lim, Jaetack

2007-01-01

In the early 1990s, university faculty members, early childhood educators, and preschool teachers in South Korea created a new paradigm for education. Eco-early childhood education uses an ecological point of view to reform existing child-centered education. This perspective proposes moving from child- to life-centered, individual- to…

Childhood adversity and traumatic exposures during deployment as predictors of mental health in Australian military veterans.

PubMed

Zheng, Wu Yi; Kanesarajah, Jeeva; Waller, Michael; McGuire, Annabel C; Treloar, Susan A; Dobson, Annette J

2016-02-01

To examine whether the relationship between traumatic exposure on deployment and poor mental health varies by the reported level of childhood adversity experienced in Australian military veterans deployed to the Bougainville or East Timor military operations. Cross-sectional self-reported survey data were collected in 2008 from 3,564 Australian military veterans who deployed to East Timor or Bougainville on their deployment experiences, health and recall of childhood events. Multivariable logistic regression was used to investigate the association between childhood adversity, deployment exposures and mental health. The most common childhood adversity reported was 'not having a special teacher, youth worker or family friend who looked out for them while growing up'. On average, responders reported experiencing 3.5 adverse childhood experiences (SD 2.7) and averaged 5.3 (SD 4.9) traumatic exposures on deployment. Both childhood adversity and traumatic exposures on deployment were associated with higher odds of poorer mental health. However, there was no evidence that level of childhood adversity modified the association between traumatic exposure and mental health. These findings suggest that military personnel who recalled a higher level of childhood adversity may need to be monitored for poor mental health and, if required, provided with appropriate support. © 2015 Public Health Association of Australia.

Early Childhood Special Education and Early Intervention Personnel Preparation Standards of the Division for Early Childhood: Field Validation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cochran, Deborah C.; Gallagher, Peggy A.; Stayton, Vicki D.; Dinnebeil, Laurie A.; Lifter, Karin; Chandler, Lynette K.; Christensen, Kimberly A.

2012-01-01

Results of the field validation survey of the revised initial and new advanced Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) Division for Early Childhood (DEC) early childhood special education (ECSE)/early intervention (EI) personnel standards are presented. Personnel standards are used as part of educational accountability systems and in teacher…

Early Childhood Predictors of Low-Income Boys’ Pathways to Antisocial Behavior in Childhood, Adolescence, and Early Adulthood

PubMed Central

Shaw, Daniel S.; Gilliam, Mary

2016-01-01

Guided by a bridging model of pathways leading to low-income boys’ early-starting and persistent trajectories of antisocial behavior, the current paper reviews evidence supporting the model from early childhood through early adulthood. Using primarily a cohort of 310 low-income boys of families recruited from WIC centers in a large metropolitan area followed from infancy to early adulthood, and smaller cohorts of boys and girls followed through early childhood, we provide evidence supporting the critical role of parenting, maternal depression, and other proximal family risk factors in early childhood that are prospectively linked to trajectories of parent-reported conduct problems in early and middle childhood, youth-reported antisocial behavior during adolescence and early adulthood, as well as court-reported violent offending in adolescence. The findings are discussed in terms of the need to identify at-risk boys in early childhood and methods and platforms for engaging families in health care settings not previously used to implement preventive mental health services. PMID:28026042

The relationship between childhood adversity, recent stressors, and depression in college students attending a South African university.

PubMed

Mall, Sumaya; Mortier, Philippe; Taljaard, Lian; Roos, Janine; Stein, Dan J; Lochner, Christine

2018-03-09

College students are at risk of depression. This risk may be increased by the experience of childhood adversity and/or recent stressors. This study examined the association between reported experiences of childhood adversity, recent stressors and depression during the last 12 months in a cohort of South African university students. Six hundred and eighty-six first year students at Stellenbosch University in South Africa completed a health-focused e-survey that included items on childhood adversity, recent stressors and mood. Individual and population attributable risk proportions (PARP) between experiences of childhood adversity and 12-month stressful experiences and 12-month depression were estimated using multivariate binomial logistic regression analysis. About one in six students reported depression during the last 12 months. Being a victim of bullying and emotional abuse or emotional neglect during childhood were the strongest predictors of depression in the past year at both individual and population level. With regard to recent stressors, a romantic partner being unfaithful, serious ongoing arguments or break-ups with some other close friend or family member and a sexual or gender identity crisis were the strongest predictors of depression. The predictor effect of recent stressors was significantly reduced in the final model that adjusted for the type and number of childhood traumatic experiences. At a population level, academic stress, serious ongoing arguments or break-ups with a close friend or family member, and serious betrayal by someone close were the variables that yielded the highest PARP. Our findings suggest a significant relationship between early adversity, recent stressors, and depression here and throughout, consistent with the broader literature on predictors of depression. This study contributes to the limited data on college students' mental health in low and middle income countries including on the African continent. The findings provide

The Drosophila foraging gene human orthologue PRKG1 predicts individual differences in the effects of early adversity on maternal sensitivity.

PubMed

Sokolowski, H Moriah; Vasquez, Oscar E; Unternaehrer, Eva; Sokolowski, Dustin J; Biergans, Stephanie D; Atkinson, Leslie; Gonzalez, Andrea; Silveira, Patricia P; Levitan, Robert; O'Donnell, Kieran J; Steiner, Meir; Kennedy, James; Meaney, Michael J; Fleming, Alison S; Sokolowski, Marla B

2017-04-01

There is variation in the extent to which childhood adverse experience affects adult individual differences in maternal behavior. Genetic variation in the animal foraging gene, which encodes a cGMP-dependent protein kinase, contributes to variation in the responses of adult fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster , to early life adversity and is also known to play a role in maternal behavior in social insects. Here we investigate genetic variation in the human foraging gene ( PRKG1 ) as a predictor of individual differences in the effects of early adversity on maternal behavior in two cohorts. We show that the PRKG1 genetic polymorphism rs2043556 associates with maternal sensitivity towards their infants. We also show that rs2043556 moderates the association between self-reported childhood adversity of the mother and her later maternal sensitivity. Mothers with the TT allele of rs2043556 appeared buffered from the effects of early adversity, whereas mothers with the presence of a C allele were not. Our study used the Toronto Longitudinal Cohort (N=288 mother-16 month old infant pairs) and the Maternal Adversity and Vulnerability and Neurodevelopment Cohort (N=281 mother-18 month old infant pairs). Our findings expand the literature on the contributions of both genetics and gene-environment interactions to maternal sensitivity, a salient feature of the early environment relevant for child neurodevelopment.

Social work and adverse childhood experiences research: implications for practice and health policy.

PubMed

Larkin, Heather; Felitti, Vincent J; Anda, Robert F

2014-01-01

Medical research on "adverse childhood experiences" (ACEs) reveals a compelling relationship between the extent of childhood adversity, adult health risk behaviors, and principal causes of death in the United States. This article provides a selective review of the ACE Study and related social science research to describe how effective social work practice that prevents ACEs and mobilizes resilience and recovery from childhood adversity could support the achievement of national health policy goals. This article applies a biopsychosocial perspective, with an emphasis on mind-body coping processes to demonstrate that social work responses to adverse childhood experiences may contribute to improvement in overall health. Consistent with this framework, the article sets forth prevention and intervention response strategies with individuals, families, communities, and the larger society. Economic research on human capital development is reviewed that suggests significant cost savings may result from effective implementation of these strategies.

Childhood psychosocial adversity and female reproductive timing: a cohort study of the ALSPAC mothers

PubMed Central

Magnus, Maria C; Anderson, Emma L; Howe, Laura D; Joinson, Carol J; Penton-Voak, Ian S; Fraser, Abigail

2018-01-01

Background Previous studies of childhood psychosocial adversity and age at menarche mostly evaluated single or a few measures of adversity, and therefore could not quantify total psychosocial adversity. Limited knowledge is currently available regarding childhood psychosocial adversity in relation to age at menopause and reproductive lifespan. Methods We examined the associations of total and specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity with age at menarche (n=8984), age at menopause (n=945), and length of reproductive lifespan (n=841), in mothers participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. We used confirmatory factor analysis to characterise lack of care, maladaptive family functioning, non-sexual abuse, overprotective parenting, parental mental illness and sexual abuse. These specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity were combined into a total psychosocial adversity score using a second-order factor analysis. We used structural equation models to simultaneously conduct the factor analysis and estimate the association with the continuous outcomes of interest. Results Total childhood psychosocial adversity was not associated with age at menarche, age at menopause or length of reproductive lifespan. When we examined the separate psychosocial adversity constructs, sexual abuse was inversely associated with age at menarche, with a mean difference of −0.17 (95% CI −0.23 to −0.12) years per SD higher factor score, and with age at menopause, with a mean difference of −0.17 (95% CI −0.52 to 0.18) per SD higher factor score. Conclusion Childhood sexual abuse was associated with lower age at menarche and menopause, but the latter needs to be confirmed in larger samples. PMID:29122994

The Disease Burden of Childhood Adversities in Adults: A Population-Based Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cuijpers, Pim; Smit, Filip; Unger, Froukje; Stikkelbroek, Yvonne; ten Have, Margreet; de Graaf, Ron

2011-01-01

Objectives: There is much evidence showing that childhood adversities have considerable effects on the mental and physical health of adults. It could be assumed therefore, that the disease burden of childhood adversities is high. It has not yet been examined, however, whether this is true. Method: We used data of a large representative sample (N =…

Adverse childhood exposures and reported child health at age 12.

PubMed

Flaherty, Emalee G; Thompson, Richard; Litrownik, Alan J; Zolotor, Adam J; Dubowitz, Howard; Runyan, Desmond K; English, Diana J; Everson, Mark D

2009-01-01

The relationship between adverse childhood exposures and poor health, illness, and somatic complaints at age 12 was examined. LONGSCAN (Consortium for Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect) tracks a group of children with variable risk for maltreatment. Of the participating child-caregiver dyads, 805 completed an interview when the child was age 4 or age 6, as well as interviews at age 8 and 12. The relationships between 8 categories of childhood adversity (psychological maltreatment, physical abuse, sexual abuse, child neglect, caregiver's substance/alcohol use, caregiver's depressive symptoms, caregiver's being treated violently, and criminal behavior in the household) and child health at age 12 were analyzed. The impact of adversity in the first 6 years of life and adversity in the second 6 years of life on child health were compared. Only 10% of the children had experienced no adversity, while more than 20% had experienced 5 or more types of childhood adversity. At age 12, 37% of the children sampled had some health complaint. Exposure to 5 or more adversities, particularly exposure in the second 6 years of life, was significantly associated with increased risks of any health complaint (odds ratio [OR] 2.24, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.02-4.96), an illness requiring a doctor (OR 3.69, 95% CI 1.02-15.1), and caregivers' reports of child's somatic complaints (OR 3.37, 95% CI 1.14-1.0). There was no association between adverse exposures and self-rated poor health or self-rated somatic complaints. A comprehensive assessment of children's health should include a careful history of their past exposure to adverse conditions and maltreatment. Interventions aimed at reducing these exposures may result in better child health.

Beyond Developmentalism? Early Childhood Teachers' Understandings of Multiage Grouping in Early Childhood Education and Care

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edwards, Susan; Blaise, Mindy; Hammer, Marie

2009-01-01

Postdevelopmental perspectives in early childhood education and care increasingly reference alternative ways of understanding learning, growth and development in early learning. Drawing on these ideas, this paper examines research findings which focused on early childhood teachers' understandings of multiage grouping. The findings suggested that…

Multi-Exposure and Clustering of Adverse Childhood Experiences, Socioeconomic Differences and Psychotropic Medication in Young Adults

PubMed Central

Björkenstam, Emma; Hjern, Anders; Mittendorfer-Rutz, Ellenor; Vinnerljung, Bo; Hallqvist, Johan; Ljung, Rickard

2013-01-01

Purpose Stressful childhood experiences have negative long-term health consequences. The present study examines the association between adverse childhood experiences, socioeconomic position, and risk of psychotropic medication in young adulthood. Methods This register-based cohort study comprises the birth cohorts between 1985 and 1988 in Sweden. We followed 362 663 individuals for use of psychotropic medication from January 2006 until December 2008. Adverse childhood experiences were severe criminality among parents, parental alcohol or drug abuse, social assistance recipiency, parental separation or single household, child welfare intervention before the age of 12, mentally ill or suicidal parents, familial death, and number of changes in place of residency. Estimates of risk of psychotropic medication were calculated as odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using logistic regression analysis. Results Adverse childhood experiences were associated with increased risks of psychotropic medication. The OR for more than three adverse childhood experiences and risk of psychotropic medication was for women 2.4 (95% CI 2.3–2.5) and for men 3.1 (95% CI 2.9–3.2). The risk of psychotropic medication increased with a higher rate of adverse childhood experiences, a relationship similar in all socioeconomic groups. Conclusions Accumulation of adverse childhood experiences increases the risk of psychotropic medication in young adults. Parental educational level is of less importance when adjusting for adverse childhood experiences. The higher risk for future mental health problems among children from lower socioeconomic groups, compared to peers from more advantaged backgrounds, seems to be linked to a higher rate of exposure to adverse childhood experiences. PMID:23341951

Multi-exposure and clustering of adverse childhood experiences, socioeconomic differences and psychotropic medication in young adults.

PubMed

Björkenstam, Emma; Hjern, Anders; Mittendorfer-Rutz, Ellenor; Vinnerljung, Bo; Hallqvist, Johan; Ljung, Rickard

2013-01-01

Stressful childhood experiences have negative long-term health consequences. The present study examines the association between adverse childhood experiences, socioeconomic position, and risk of psychotropic medication in young adulthood. This register-based cohort study comprises the birth cohorts between 1985 and 1988 in Sweden. We followed 362 663 individuals for use of psychotropic medication from January 2006 until December 2008. Adverse childhood experiences were severe criminality among parents, parental alcohol or drug abuse, social assistance recipiency, parental separation or single household, child welfare intervention before the age of 12, mentally ill or suicidal parents, familial death, and number of changes in place of residency. Estimates of risk of psychotropic medication were calculated as odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) using logistic regression analysis. Adverse childhood experiences were associated with increased risks of psychotropic medication. The OR for more than three adverse childhood experiences and risk of psychotropic medication was for women 2.4 (95% CI 2.3-2.5) and for men 3.1 (95% CI 2.9-3.2). The risk of psychotropic medication increased with a higher rate of adverse childhood experiences, a relationship similar in all socioeconomic groups. Accumulation of adverse childhood experiences increases the risk of psychotropic medication in young adults. Parental educational level is of less importance when adjusting for adverse childhood experiences. The higher risk for future mental health problems among children from lower socioeconomic groups, compared to peers from more advantaged backgrounds, seems to be linked to a higher rate of exposure to adverse childhood experiences.

Leadership in Early Childhood Special Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arora, Samita Berry

2013-01-01

With the demands of high quality early childhood special education programs within public school settings, there is a need to place emphasis on research and training regarding early childhood leaders and managers in this complex and diverse field. The focus of this research is to examine what early childhood special education (ECSE) leadership…

[Suicidal behaviors among young adults: risk factors during development from early childhood to adolescence].

PubMed

Buchmann, Arlette F; Blomeyer, Dorothea; Laucht, Manfred

2012-01-01

Suicidal behaviors are prevalent among young people. Numerous risk factors have been implicated in their development. In the framework of the longitudinal Mannheim Study of Children at Risk, 311 young adults (143 males, 168 females) aged 19-23 years were investigated in order 1) to determine the significance of different risk factors during development in predicting suicidal behaviors in young adulthood, 2) to identify potential risk factors discriminating between suicidal ideation and suicide attempts, and 3) to examine whether the effect of early risk factors was mediated by later occurring predictors. Young adults with suicidal behaviors displayed a number of abnormalities during development, including high load of early family adversity, suicidal ideation and psychiatric problems in childhood and adolescence, as well as low self esteem, poor school functioning, higher levels of novelty seeking, and enhanced affiliations with deviant peers in adolescence. Independent contributions to predicting suicidal behaviors in young adults were provided by early family adversity, suicidal ideation during childhood and adolescence, and low self esteem (with regard to suicidal ideation) and novelty seeking (with regard to suicide attempt), respectively. The impact of early adversity was mediated by child and adolescent externalizing disorders and low self esteem in adolescence. Possible implications of these findings for the prevention and treatment of suicidal behaviors are discussed.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Risk of Binge Drinking and Drunkenness in Middle-Aged Finnish Men

PubMed Central

Kauhanen, Laura; Leino, Janne; Lakka, Hanna-Maaria; Lynch, John W.; Kauhanen, Jussi

2011-01-01

Objective. The purpose of this study was to investigate associations between adverse childhood experiences and binge drinking and drunkenness in adulthood using both historical and recalled data from childhood. Methods. Data on childhood adverse experiences were collected from school health records and questionnaires completed in adulthood. Adulthood data were obtained from the baseline examinations of the male participants (n = 2682) in the Kuopio Ischaemic Heart Disease Risk Factor Study (KIHD) in 1984–1989 from eastern Finland. School health records from the 1930s to 1950s were available for a subsample of KIHD men (n = 952). Results. According to the school health records, men who had adverse childhood experiences had a 1.51-fold (95% CI 1.05 to 2.18) age- and examination-year adjusted odds of binge drinking in adulthood. After adjustment for socioeconomic position in adulthood or behavioural factors in adulthood, the association remained unchanged. Adjustment for socioeconomic position in childhood attenuated these effects. Also the recalled data showed associations with adverse childhood experiences and binge drinking with different beverages. Conclusions. Our findings suggest that childhood adversities are associated with increased risk of binge drinking in adulthood. PMID:22111009

Associations of adversity in childhood and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in mid-adulthood.

PubMed

Anderson, Emma L; Fraser, Abigail; Caleyachetty, Rishi; Hardy, Rebecca; Lawlor, Debbie A; Howe, Laura D

2018-02-01

Studies assessing associations of childhood psychosocial adversity (e.g. sexual abuse, physical neglect, parental death), as opposed to socioeconomic adversity, with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in adulthood are scarce. The aim of this study is to assess associations of various types of psychosocial adversity and cumulative adversity in childhood, with multiple CVD risk factors in mid-life. At study enrolment, women from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (N=3612) retrospectively reported: lack of maternal care, maternal overprotection, parental mental illness, household dysfunction, sexual abuse, physical and emotional abuse, and neglect in childhood. Approximately 23 years later, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, plasma glucose, insulin, triglycerides, low and high density lipoprotein cholesterol, C-reactive protein, carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) and arterial distensibility were assessed (mean age 51 years). We examined associations of each specific type of psychosocial adversity and cumulative adversity with CVD risk factors. No specific type of psychosocial adversity was consistently associated with the CVD risk factors. There was evidence that a one standard deviation greater cumulative psychosocial adversity was associated with 0.51cm greater waist circumference (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.02cm, 1.00cm, p=0.04) and a lower arterial distensibility, even after adjustment for age, ethnicity and childhood and adult socioeconomic position. We found no consistent evidence that any specific type of psychosocial adversity, or cumulative psychosocial adversity in childhood, is associated with CVD risk factors in adult women. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

MRI uncovers disrupted hippocampal microstructure that underlies memory impairments after early-life adversity.

PubMed

Molet, Jenny; Maras, Pamela M; Kinney-Lang, Eli; Harris, Neil G; Rashid, Faisal; Ivy, Autumn S; Solodkin, Ana; Obenaus, Andre; Baram, Tallie Z

2016-12-01

Memory and related cognitive functions are progressively impaired in a subgroup of individuals experiencing childhood adversity and stress. However, it is not possible to identify vulnerable individuals early, a crucial step for intervention. In this study, high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and intra-hippocampal diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) were employed to examine for structural signatures of cognitive adolescent vulnerabilities in a rodent model of early-life adversity. These methods were complemented by neuroanatomical and functional assessments of hippocampal network integrity during adolescence, adulthood and middle-age. The high-resolution MRI identified selective loss of dorsal hippocampal volume, and intra-hippocampal DTI uncovered disruption of dendritic structure, consistent with disrupted local connectivity, already during late adolescence in adversity-experiencing rats. Memory deteriorated over time, and stunting of hippocampal dendritic trees was apparent on neuroanatomical analyses. Thus, disrupted hippocampal neuronal structure and connectivity, associated with cognitive impairments, are detectable via non-invasive imaging modalities in rats experiencing early-life adversity. These high-resolution imaging approaches may constitute promising tools for prediction and assessment of at-risk individuals in the clinic. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Promoting Resilience: Breaking the Intergenerational Cycle of Adverse Childhood Experiences.

PubMed

Woods-Jaeger, Briana A; Cho, Bridget; Sexton, Chris C; Slagel, Lauren; Goggin, Kathy

2018-02-01

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), including trauma exposure, parent mental health problems, and family dysfunction, put children at risk for disrupted brain development and increased risk for later health problems and mortality. These negative effects may be prevented by resilience promoting environments that include protective caregiving relationships. We sought to understand (1) parents' experiences of ACEs, (2) the perceived impact on parenting, (3) protective factors that buffer ACEs potential negative impact, and (4) supports and services that can reduce the number and severity of ACEs and promote resilience among children exposed to early adversity. We conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with 11 low-income, urban parents of young children who had experienced ACEs. Interviews were analyzed for emergent themes and shared with parents from the community to ensure relevance and proper interpretation. Themes from these interviews describe the potential intergenerational cycle of ACEs and key factors that can break that cycle, including parent aspirations to make children's lives better and parent nurturance and support. Parents' suggestions for intervention are also presented. Our findings illuminate protective factors and family strengths that are important to build upon when developing and implementing interventions to promote resilience among parents and children exposed to early adversity. This study benefits from highly ecologically valid data obtained from low-socioeconomic status, racial/ethnic minority parents through one-on-one in-depth interviews and interpreted with the aid of community stakeholders through a community-based participatory research approach.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Adult Criminality: How Long Must We Live before We Possess Our Own Lives?

PubMed Central

Reavis, James A; Looman, Jan; Franco, Kristina A; Rojas, Briana

2013-01-01

Background: Empirical research associated with the Kaiser Permanente and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study has demonstrated that ACE are associated with a range of negative outcomes in adulthood, including physical and mental health disorders and aggressive behavior. Methods: Subjects from 4 different offender groups (N = 151) who were referred for treatment at an outpatient clinic in San Diego, CA, subsequent to conviction in criminal court, completed the ACE Questionnaire. Groups (nonsexual child abusers, domestic violence offenders, sexual offenders, and stalkers) were compared on the incidence of ACE, and comparisons were made between the group offenders and a normative sample. Results: Results indicated that the offender group reported nearly four times as many adverse events in childhood than an adult male normative sample. Eight of ten events were found at significantly higher levels among the criminal population. In addition, convicted sexual offenders and child abusers were more likely to report experiencing sexual abuse in childhood than other offender types. Conclusions: On the basis of a review of the literature and current findings, criminal behavior can be added to the host of negative outcomes associated with scores on the ACE Questionnaire. Childhood adversity is associated with adult criminality. We suggest that to decrease criminal recidivism, treatment interventions must focus on the effects of early life experiences. PMID:23704843

Early childhood risk and resilience factors for behavioural and emotional problems in middle childhood.

PubMed

Cabaj, Jason L; McDonald, Sheila W; Tough, Suzanne C

2014-07-01

Mental disorders in childhood have a considerable health and societal impact but the associated negative consequences may be ameliorated through early identification of risk and protective factors that can guide health promoting and preventive interventions. The objective of this study was to inform health policy and practice through identification of demographic, familial and environmental factors associated with emotional or behavioural problems in middle childhood, and the predictors of resilience in the presence of identified risk factors. A cohort of 706 mothers followed from early pregnancy was surveyed at six to eight years post-partum by a mail-out questionnaire, which included questions on demographics, children's health, development, activities, media and technology, family, friends, community, school life, and mother's health. Although most children do well in middle childhood, of 450 respondents (64% response rate), 29.5% and 25.6% of children were found to have internalising and externalising behaviour problem scores in the lowest quintile on the NSCLY Child Behaviour Scales. Independent predictors for problem behaviours identified through multivariable logistic regression modelling included being male, demographic risk, maternal mental health risk, poor parenting interactions, and low parenting morale. Among children at high risk for behaviour problems, protective factors included high maternal and child self-esteem, good maternal emotional health, adequate social support, good academic performance, and adequate quality parenting time. These findings demonstrate that several individual and social resilience factors can counter the influence of early adversities on the likelihood of developing problem behaviours in middle childhood, thus informing enhanced public health interventions for this understudied life course phase.

EARLY CHILDHOOD PREDICTORS OF LOW-INCOME BOYS' PATHWAYS TO ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR IN CHILDHOOD, ADOLESCENCE, AND EARLY ADULTHOOD.

PubMed

Shaw, Daniel S; Gilliam, Mary

2017-01-01

Guided by a bridging model of pathways leading to low-income boys' early starting and persistent trajectories of antisocial behavior, the current article reviews evidence supporting the model from early childhood through early adulthood. Using primarily a cohort of 310 low-income boys of families recruited from Women, Infants, and Children Nutrition Supplement centers in a large metropolitan area followed from infancy to early adulthood and a smaller cohort of boys and girls followed through early childhood, we provide evidence supporting the critical role of parenting, maternal depression, and other proximal family risk factors in early childhood that are prospectively linked to trajectories of parent-reported conduct problems in early and middle childhood, youth-reported antisocial behavior during adolescence and early adulthood, and court-reported violent offending in adolescence. The findings are discussed in terms of the need to identify at-risk boys in early childhood and methods and platforms for engaging families in healthcare settings not previously used to implement preventive mental health services. © 2016 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

Adulthood Stressors, History of Childhood Adversity, and Risk of Perpetration of Intimate Partner Violence

PubMed Central

Roberts, Andrea L.; McLaughlin, Katie A.; Conron, Kerith J.; Koenen, Karestan C.

2010-01-01

Background Over half a million U.S. women and more than 100,000 men are treated for injuries from intimate partner violence (IPV) annually, making IPV perpetration a major public health problem. However, little is known about causes of perpetration across the life course. Purpose This paper examines the role of “stress sensitization,” whereby adult stressors increase risk for IPV perpetration most strongly in people with a history of childhood adversity. Methods The study investigated a possible interaction effect between adulthood stressors and childhood adversities in risk of IPV perpetration, specifically, whether the difference in risk of IPV perpetration associated with past-year stressors varied by history of exposure to childhood adversity. Analyses were conducted in 2010 using de-identified data from 34,653 U.S. adults from the 2004–2005 follow-up wave of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Results There was a significant stress sensitization effect. For men with high-level childhood adversity, past-year stressors were associated with an 8.8% increased risk of perpetrating compared to a 2.3% increased risk among men with low-level adversity. Women with high-level childhood adversity had a 14.3% increased risk compared with a 2.5% increased risk in the low-level adversity group. Conclusions Individuals with recent stressors and histories of childhood adversity are at particularly elevated risk of IPV perpetration; therefore, prevention efforts should target this population. Treatment programs for IPV perpetrators, which have not been effective in reducing risk of perpetrating, may benefit from further investigating the role of stress and stress reactivity in perpetration. PMID:21238860

Childhood psychosocial adversity and female reproductive timing: a cohort study of the ALSPAC mothers.

PubMed

Magnus, Maria C; Anderson, Emma L; Howe, Laura D; Joinson, Carol J; Penton-Voak, Ian S; Fraser, Abigail

2018-01-01

Previous studies of childhood psychosocial adversity and age at menarche mostly evaluated single or a few measures of adversity, and therefore could not quantify total psychosocial adversity. Limited knowledge is currently available regarding childhood psychosocial adversity in relation to age at menopause and reproductive lifespan. We examined the associations of total and specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity with age at menarche (n=8984), age at menopause (n=945), and length of reproductive lifespan (n=841), in mothers participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. We used confirmatory factor analysis to characterise lack of care, maladaptive family functioning, non-sexual abuse, overprotective parenting, parental mental illness and sexual abuse. These specific components of childhood psychosocial adversity were combined into a total psychosocial adversity score using a second-order factor analysis. We used structural equation models to simultaneously conduct the factor analysis and estimate the association with the continuous outcomes of interest. Total childhood psychosocial adversity was not associated with age at menarche, age at menopause or length of reproductive lifespan. When we examined the separate psychosocial adversity constructs, sexual abuse was inversely associated with age at menarche, with a mean difference of -0.17 (95% CI -0.23 to -0.12) years per SD higher factor score, and with age at menopause, with a mean difference of -0.17 (95% CI -0.52 to 0.18) per SD higher factor score. Childhood sexual abuse was associated with lower age at menarche and menopause, but the latter needs to be confirmed in larger samples. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Early childhood adversity potentiates the adverse association between prenatal organophosphate pesticide exposure and child IQ: The CHAMACOS cohort.

PubMed

Stein, Lauren J; Gunier, Robert B; Harley, Kim; Kogut, Katherine; Bradman, Asa; Eskenazi, Brenda

2016-09-01

Previous studies have observed an adverse association between prenatal exposure to organophosphate pesticide (OPs) and child cognition, but few studies consider the potential role of social stressors in modifying this relationship. We seek to explore the potential role of early social adversities in modifying the relationship between OPs and child IQ in an agricultural Mexican American population. Participants from the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas (CHAMACOS) study, a prospective longitudinal pre-birth cohort study, include 329 singleton infants and their mothers followed from pregnancy through age 7. Dialkyl phosphate metabolite concentrations (DAPs), a biomarker of organophosphate pesticide exposure, were measured in maternal urine collected twice during pregnancy and averaged. Child cognitive ability was assessed at 7 years using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - Fourth Edition. Demographic characteristics and adversity information were collected during interviews and home visits at numerous time points from pregnancy until age 7. Among low-income Latina mothers and their children in the Salinas Valley, total adversity and specific domains of adversity including poor learning environment and adverse parent-child relationships were negatively associated with child cognition. Adverse associations between DAP concentrations and IQ were stronger in children experiencing greater adversity; these associations varied by child sex. For example, the association between prenatal OP exposure and Full-Scale IQ is potentiated among boys who experienced high adversity in the learning environment (β=-13.3; p-value <0.01). Greater total and domain-specific adversity modifies negative relationships between prenatal OP exposure and child IQ differently among male and female children. These findings emphasize the need to consider plausible interactive pathways between social adversities and environmental exposures. Copyright �

Adverse Childhood Experiences Are Linked to Age of Onset and Reading Recognition in Multiple Sclerosis.

PubMed

Shaw, Michael T; Pawlak, Natalie O; Frontario, Ariana; Sherman, Kathleen; Krupp, Lauren B; Charvet, Leigh E

2017-01-01

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) exert a psychological and physiological toll that increases risk of chronic conditions, poorer social functioning, and cognitive impairment in adulthood. To investigate the relationship between childhood adversity and clinical disease features in multiple sclerosis (MS). Sixty-seven participants with MS completed the ACE assessment and neuropsychological assessments as part of a larger clinical trial of cognitive remediation. Adverse childhood experience scores, a measure of exposure to adverse events in childhood, significantly predicted age of MS onset ( r  = -0.30, p  = 0.04). ACEs were also linked to reading recognition (a proxy for premorbid IQ) ( r  = -0.25, p  = 0.04). ACE scores were not related to age, current disability, or current level of cognitive impairment measured by the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT). Childhood adversity may increase the likelihood of earlier age of onset and poorer estimated premorbid IQ in MS.

Childhood adverse life events and parental psychopathology as risk factors for bipolar disorder.

PubMed

Bergink, V; Larsen, J T; Hillegers, M H J; Dahl, S K; Stevens, H; Mortensen, P B; Petersen, L; Munk-Olsen, T

2016-10-25

Childhood adverse events are risk factors for later bipolar disorder. We quantified the risks for a later diagnosis of bipolar disorder after exposure to adverse life events in children with and without parental psychopathology. This register-based population cohort study included all persons born in Denmark from 1980 to 1998 (980 554 persons). Adversities before age 15 years were: familial disruption; parental somatic illness; any parental psychopathology; parental labour market exclusion; parental imprisonment; placement in out-of-home care; and parental natural and unnatural death. We calculated risk estimates of each of these eight life events as single exposure and risk estimates for exposure to multiple life events. Main outcome variable was a diagnosis of bipolar disorder after the age of 15 years, analysed with Cox proportional hazard regression. Single exposure to most of the investigated adversities were associated with increased risk for bipolar disorder, exceptions were parental somatic illness and parental natural death. By far the strongest risk factor for bipolar disorder in our study was any mental disorder in the parent (hazard ratio 3.53; 95% confidence interval 2.73-4.53) and the additional effects of life events on bipolar risk were limited. An effect of early adverse life events on bipolar risk later in life was mainly observed in children without parental psychopathology. Our findings do not exclude early-life events as possible risk factors, but challenge the concept of adversities as important independent determinants of bipolar disorder in genetically vulnerable individuals.

Early life adversity potentiates the effects of later life stress on cumulative physiological dysregulation.

PubMed

Dich, Nadya; Hansen, Åse Marie; Avlund, Kirsten; Lund, Rikke; Mortensen, Erik Lykke; Bruunsgaard, Helle; Rod, Naja Hulvej

2015-01-01

Previous research indicates that early life adversity may heighten stress reactivity and impair mechanisms for adaptive coping, suggesting that experience of stress in early life may also potentiate adults' physiological vulnerability to stress in later life. The study tested this hypothesis by investigating whether the experience of stressful events and circumstances (SEC) in childhood or adolescence amplified the effect of adulthood SEC on physiological dysregulation (allostatic load, AL) in later midlife. Observational data were used in the present study. Physiological functioning was measured in later midlife (participants' age ranged from 49 to 63 years). Both childhood/adolescence and adulthood SEC were reported retrospectively on the same occasion. Participants were 5309 Danish men and women from Copenhagen Aging and Midlife Biobank (CAMB). SEC included socioeconomic and family factors. The AL index was based on nine cardiovascular, metabolic, and immune biomarkers. Experience of SEC in both early life and adulthood independently predicted higher AL. In men, experience of SEC in early life also potentiated the effect of SEC in adulthood on AL. The results provide further insight into the mechanisms behind the "biological embedding" of childhood stress.

Childhood adversity is linked to differential brain volumes in adolescents with alcohol use disorder: a voxel-based morphometry study.

PubMed

Brooks, Samantha J; Dalvie, Shareefa; Cuzen, Natalie L; Cardenas, Valerie; Fein, George; Stein, Dan J

2014-06-01

Previous neuroimaging studies link both alcohol use disorder (AUD) and early adversity to neurobiological differences in the adult brain. However, the association between AUD and childhood adversity and effects on the developing adolescent brain are less clear, due in part to the confound of psychiatric comorbidity. Here we examine early life adversity and its association with brain volume in a unique sample of 116 South African adolescents (aged 12-16) with AUD but without psychiatric comorbidity. Participants were 58 adolescents with DSM-IV alcohol dependence and with no other psychiatric comorbidities, and 58 age-, gender- and protocol-matched light/non-drinking controls (HC). Assessments included the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). MR images were acquired on a 3T Siemens Magnetom Allegra scanner. Volumes of global and regional structures were estimated using SPM8 Voxel Based Morphometry (VBM), with analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and regression analyses. In whole brain ANCOVA analyses, a main effect of group when examining the AUD effect after covarying out CTQ was observed on brain volume in bilateral superior temporal gyrus. Subsequent regression analyses to examine how childhood trauma scores are linked to brain volumes in the total cohort revealed a negative correlation in the left hippocampus and right precentral gyrus. Furthermore, bilateral (but most significantly left) hippocampal volume was negatively associated with sub-scores on the CTQ in the total cohort. These findings support our view that some alterations found in brain volumes in studies of adolescent AUD may reflect the impact of confounding factors such as psychiatric comorbidity rather than the effects of alcohol per se. In particular, early life adversity may influence the developing adolescent brain in specific brain regions, such as the hippocampus.

Early Childhood Workforce Index, 2016

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Whitebook, Marcy; McLean, Caitlin; Austin, Lea J. E.

2016-01-01

The State of the Early Childhood Workforce (SECW) Initiative is a groundbreaking multi-year project to shine a steady spotlight on the nation's early childhood workforce. The SECW Initiative is designed to challenge entrenched ideas and policies that maintain an inequitable and inadequate status quo for early educators and for the children and…

Early Childhood Care and Education in Kenya

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mbugua, Tata J.

2004-01-01

Recent years have seen a global endeavor to prioritize early childhood care and education as a foundation for later learning and development, as evidenced by the Global Guidelines for Early Childhood Education and Care in the 21st Century (Association for Childhood Education International/World Organization for Early Childhood, 1999). Such efforts…

The disease burden of childhood adversities in adults: a population-based study.

PubMed

Cuijpers, Pim; Smit, Filip; Unger, Froukje; Stikkelbroek, Yvonne; Ten Have, Margreet; de Graaf, Ron

2011-11-01

There is much evidence showing that childhood adversities have considerable effects on the mental and physical health of adults. It could be assumed therefore, that the disease burden of childhood adversities is high. It has not yet been examined, however, whether this is true. We used data of a large representative sample (N=7,076) of the general population in the Netherlands. We calculated the disability weight (DW) for each respondent. The DW is a weight factor that reflects the severity of a disease or condition on a scale from 0 (perfect health) to 1 (equivalent to death). We used an algorithm based on the SF-6D to estimate DW. Because the DW indicates the proportion of a healthy life year that is reduced by the specific health state of the individual, it also possible to calculate the total number of years lost due to disability (YLD) in the population. We calculated the years lived with disability (YLD) for 9 different childhood adversities (in the areas of parental psychopathology; abuse and neglect; major life events), as well as for major categories of mental disorders and general medical disorders. All 9 adversities resulted in a significantly increased DW, except death of a parent before the age of 16. Adversities in the category of abuse and neglect are associated with the highest DWs (0.057), followed by parental psychopathology (0.031) and life events during childhood (0.012). All adversities (46.4% of the population reports one or more adversity) are associated with 20.7 YLD/1,000, which is more than all mental disorders together (12.9 YLD/1,000). The category of abuse/neglect has the highest YLD/1,000 (15.8), which is also higher than all mental disorders together. Adjustment for the presence of mental and general medical disorders resulted in comparable outcomes. Childhood adversities are more important from a public health point of view than all common mental disorders together, and should be a priority for public health interventions. Copyright

Children with Special Needs: Lessons for Early Childhood Professionals. Early Childhood Education Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kostelnik, Marjorie J.; Onaga, Esther; Rohde, Barbara; Whiren, Alice

Bridging the gap between child development and strategies for inclusion, this book is intended to help early childhood practitioners and pre-service teachers feel better equipped to meet the needs of all the children in their early childhood setting. Each chapter of the book is a case study introducing a child (ages birth to 8 years) with one or…

Childhood adversity, social support networks and well-being among youth aging out of care: An exploratory study of mediation.

PubMed

Melkman, Eran P

2017-10-01

The goals of the present study are to examine the relationship between childhood adversity and adult well-being among vulnerable young adults formerly placed in substitute care, and to investigate how characteristics of their social support networks mediate this association. A sample of 345 Israeli young adults (ages 18-25), who had aged out of foster or residential care, responded to standardized self-report questionnaires tapping their social support network characteristics (e.g., network size or adequacy) vis-à-vis several types of social support (emotional, practical, information and guidance), experiences of childhood adversity, and measures of well-being (psychological distress, loneliness, and life satisfaction). Structural equation modelling (SEM) provided support for the mediating role of social support in the relationship between early adversity and adult well-being. Although network size, frequency of contact with its members, satisfaction with support, and network adequacy, were all negatively related to early adversity, only network adequacy showed a major and consistent contribution to the various measures of well-being. While patterns were similar across the types of support, the effects of practical and guidance support were most substantial. The findings suggest that the detrimental long-term consequences of early adversity on adult well-being are related not only to impaired structural aspects of support (e.g., network size), but also to a decreased ability to recognize available support and mobilize it. Practical and guidance support, more than emotional support, seem to be of critical importance. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Cord blood DNA methylation and adiposity measures in early and mid-childhood.

PubMed

Kresovich, Jacob K; Zheng, Yinan; Cardenas, Andres; Joyce, Brian T; Rifas-Shiman, Sheryl L; Oken, Emily; Gillman, Matthew W; Hivert, Marie-France; Baccarelli, Andrea A; Hou, Lifang

2017-01-01

Excess adiposity in childhood is associated with numerous adverse health outcomes. As this condition is difficult to treat once present, identification of risk early in life can help inform and implement strategies to prevent the onset of the condition. We performed an epigenome-wide association study to prospectively investigate the relationship between cord blood DNA methylation and adiposity measurements in childhood. We measured genome-wide DNA methylation from 478 children in cord blood and measured overall and central adiposity via skinfold caliper measurements in early (range 3.1-3.3 years) and mid-childhood (age range 7.3-8.3 years) and via dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in mid-childhood. Final models were adjusted for maternal age at enrollment, pre-pregnancy body mass index, education, folate intake during pregnancy, smoking during pregnancy, and gestational weight gain, and child sex, race/ethnicity, current age, and cord blood cell composition. We identified four promoter proximal CpG sites that were associated with adiposity as measured by subscapular (SS) and triceps (TR) ratio (SS:TR) in early childhood, in the genes KPRP , SCL9A10 , MYLK2 , and PRLHR . We additionally identified one gene body CpG site associated with early childhood SS + TR on PPAPDC1A ; this site was nominally associated with SS + TR in mid-childhood. Higher methylation at one promoter proximal CpG site in MMP25 was also associated with SS:TR in mid-childhood. In regional analyses, methylation at an exonal region of GFPT2 was positively associated with SS:TR in early childhood. Finally, we identified regions of two long, non-coding RNAs which were associated with SS:TR (LOC100049716) and fat-free mass index (LOC102723493) in mid-childhood. This analysis identified novel CpG loci associated with adiposity outcomes. However, our results suggest little consistency across the various adiposity outcomes tested, particularly among the more accurate DXA measurements of body composition

Childhood adversity, parental vulnerability and disorder: examining inter-generational transmission of risk.

PubMed

Bifulco, A; Moran, P M; Ball, C; Jacobs, C; Baines, R; Bunn, A; Cavagin, J

2002-11-01

An investigation of intergenerational factors associated with psychiatric disorder in late adolescence/early adulthood was undertaken to differentiate influences from maternal disorder, maternal poor psychosocial functioning and poor parenting, on offspring. The sample comprised an intensively studied series of 276 mother-offspring pairs in a relatively deprived inner-city London area with high rates of lone parenthood and socio-economic disadvantage. The paired sample was collected over two time periods: first a consecutively screened series of mothers and offspring in 1985-90 (n = 172 pairs) and second a 'vulnerable' series of mothers and offspring in 1995-99 (n = 104 pairs). The vulnerable mothers were selected for poor interpersonal functioning and/or low self-esteem and the consecutive series were used for comparison. Rates of childhood adversity and disorder in the offspring were examined in the two groups. Maternal characteristics including psychosocial vulnerability and depression were then examined in relation to risk transmission. Offspring of vulnerable mothers had a fourfold higher rate of yearly disorder than those in the comparison series (43% vs. 11%, p < .001). They were twice as likely as those in the comparison series to have experienced childhood adversity comprising either severe neglect, physical or sexual abuse before age 17. Physical abuse, in particular, perpetrated either by mother or father/surrogate father was significantly raised in the vulnerable group. Analysis of the combined series showed that maternal vulnerability and neglect/abuse of offspring provided the best model for offspring disorder. Maternal history of depression had no direct effect on offspring disorder; its effects were entirely mediated by offspring neglect/abuse. Maternal childhood adversity also had no direct effect. Results are discussed in relation to psychosocial models of risk transmission for disorder. Maternal poor psychosocial functioning needs to be

Colorado Early Childhood Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colorado State Dept. of Education, Denver. Planning and Evaluation Unit.

The Colorado State Board of Education allocated Title IV-V funds in 1975 for a study of the status of early childhood education in Colorado. The purposes of the study were to: (1) gather data relevant to early childhood education on the status of all children from birth through age 5; (2) identify needs of children of this age within the state;…

Adverse childhood experiences: assessing the impact on health and school engagement and the mitigating role of resilience.

PubMed

Bethell, Christina D; Newacheck, Paul; Hawes, Eva; Halfon, Neal

2014-12-01

The ongoing longitudinal Adverse Childhood Experiences Study of adults has found significant associations between chronic conditions; quality of life and life expectancy in adulthood; and the trauma and stress associated with adverse childhood experiences, including physical or emotional abuse or neglect, deprivation, or exposure to violence. Less is known about the population-based epidemiology of adverse childhood experiences among US children. Using the 2011-12 National Survey of Children's Health, we assessed the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences and associations between them and factors affecting children's development and lifelong health. After we adjusted for confounding factors, we found lower rates of school engagement and higher rates of chronic disease among children with adverse childhood experiences. Our findings suggest that building resilience-defined in the survey as "staying calm and in control when faced with a challenge," for children ages 6-17-can ameliorate the negative impact of adverse childhood experiences. We found higher rates of school engagement among children with adverse childhood experiences who demonstrated resilience, as well as higher rates of resilience among children with such experiences who received care in a family-centered medical home. We recommend a coordinated effort to fill knowledge gaps and translate existing knowledge about adverse childhood experiences and resilience into national, state, and local policies, with a focus on addressing childhood trauma in health systems as they evolve during ongoing reform. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

Controlling Anxiety Mediates the Influence of Childhood Adversities on Risky Sexual Behaviors Among Emerging Adults.

PubMed

Wong, Janet Yuen-Ha; Choi, Edmond Pui-Hang; Chan, Claudia Kor-Yee; Fong, Daniel Yee-Tak

2017-10-01

Relatively little research has assessed the exposure-response relationship of childhood adversities on engaging in risky sexual behaviors. Also, no previous research has examined the interrelationship among childhood adversities, adult anxiety and depressive symptoms, and risky sexual behaviors. This study aimed to investigate their interrelationships. We used data from a multisite survey of emerging adults aged 18 to 29 studying at four universities in Hong Kong between September and December 2015. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to examine the pathways from childhood adversities to risky sexual behaviors. Participants who had higher childhood adversity scores reported more severe adult anxiety symptoms (β = 0.20, p = 0.002); and adult anxiety symptoms were associated with significantly more risky sexual behaviors (β = 0.46, p < 0.0001). The model with adult anxiety symptoms as the mediator between childhood adversities and risky sexual behaviors showed good fit (root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.04, comparative fit index [CFI] = 0.96, Tucker-Lewis index [TLI] = 0.94 and standardized root mean square residual [SRMSR] = 0.04). However, adult depressive symptoms failed to mediate between childhood adversities and risky sexual behaviors. This study demonstrates the link between childhood adversities and risky sexual behaviors via adult anxiety but not adult depressive symptoms. It is essential to reduce anxious symptoms in dealing with emerging adults who have risky sexual behaviors to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unintended pregnancy.

Kindling of Life Stress in Bipolar Disorder: Effects of Early Adversity.

PubMed

Shapero, Benjamin G; Weiss, Rachel B; Burke, Taylor A; Boland, Elaine M; Abramson, Lyn Y; Alloy, Lauren B

2017-05-01

Most theoretical frameworks regarding the role of life stress in bipolar disorders (BD) do not incorporate the possibility of a changing relationship between psychosocial context and episode initiation across the course of the disorder. The kindling hypothesis theorizes that over the longitudinal course of recurrent affective disorders, the relationship between major life stressors and episode initiation declines (Post, 1992). The present study aimed to test an extension of the kindling hypothesis in BD by examining the effect of early life adversity on the relationship between proximal life events and prospectively assessed mood episodes. Data from 145 bipolar participants (59.3% female, 75.2% Caucasian, and mean age of 20.19 years; SD = 1.75 years) were collected as part of the Temple-Wisconsin Longitudinal Investigation of Bipolar Spectrum Project (112 Bipolar II; 33 Cyclothymic disorder). Participants completed a self-report measure of early adversity at baseline and interview-assessed mood episodes and life events at regular 4-month follow-ups. Results indicate that early childhood adversity sensitized bipolar participants to the effects of recent stressors only for depressive episodes and not hypomanic episodes within BD. This was particularly the case with minor negative events. The current study extends prior research examining the kindling model in BD using a methodologically rigorous assessment of life stressors and mood episode occurrence. Clinicians should assess experiences of early adversity in individuals with BD as it may impact reactivity to developing depressive episodes in response to future stressors. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Integrating Computer Technology in Early Childhood Education Environments: Issues Raised by Early Childhood Educators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wood, Eileen; Specht, Jacqueline; Willoughby, Teena; Mueller, Julie

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the educators' perspectives on the introduction of computer technology in the early childhood education environment. Fifty early childhood educators completed a survey and participated in focus groups. Parallels existed between the individually completed survey data and the focus group discussions. The…

Early cumulative risk predicts externalizing behavior at age 10: The mediating role of adverse parenting.

PubMed

Gach, Emily J; Ip, Ka I; Sameroff, Arnold J; Olson, Sheryl L

2018-02-01

Multiple environmental risk factors in early childhood predict a broad range of adverse developmental outcomes. However, most prior longitudinal research has not illuminated explanatory mechanisms. Our main goals were to examine predictive associations between cumulative ecological risk factors in early childhood and children's later externalizing problems and to determine whether these associations were explained by variations in parenting quality. Participants were 241 children (118 girls) at risk for school-age conduct problems and their parents and teachers. Children were approximately 3 years old at Time 1 (T1) and 10 years old at Time 2 (T2). Reports of contextual risk at T1 were used to develop a cumulative risk index consisting of 6 singular risk variables from 3 ecological levels: social resources (low income; social isolation), family resources (marital aggression; poor total family functioning), and maternal resources (single parent status; poor maternal mental health). At T1, parenting variables were measured (corporal punishment, warm responsiveness, maternal efficacy, and negative perceptions of child behavior). At T2, mothers, fathers, and teachers reported child externalizing problems. Johnson's relative weight analysis revealed that the cumulative risk index was a more powerful predictor of age 10 years externalizing behavior than any of the singular contextual risk variables. Adverse parenting mediated the effects of cumulative risk on later child externalizing problems. Our findings have significant implications for understanding long-term effects of multiple contextual risk factors present in early childhood and for the implementation of positive parenting interventions early on. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Childhood Adversities and Educational Attainment in Young Adulthood: The Role of Mental Health Problems in Adolescence.

PubMed

Veldman, Karin; Bültmann, Ute; Almansa, Josue; Reijneveld, Sijmen A

2015-11-01

The aims of this study were to examine whether the association between childhood adversities and educational attainment in young adulthood can be explained by mental health problems in adolescence and whether associations and pathways differ for boys and girls. Data were used of 2,230 participants from the Tracking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey, a Dutch prospective cohort study with a 9-year follow-up. Childhood adversities were measured at age 11 years, mental health problems (i.e., externalizing, internalizing and attention problems with Youth Self-Report) at age 16 years, and educational attainment at age 19 years. Structural equation modeling was performed to analyze the data, overall and stratified by gender. Only among boys, childhood adversities were associated with low educational attainment in young adulthood. Externalizing problems in adolescence explained 5% of the association between childhood adversities and educational attainment. Furthermore, for both boys and girls, externalizing problems in adolescence had a direct effect on educational attainment in young adulthood. Among boys, childhood adversities are associated with poorer educational outcomes of young adults. A part of this association runs via adolescent externalizing problems. The results suggest that boys, compared with girls, are less capable to cope with childhood adversities. Monitoring of exposed boys to childhood adversities is of utmost importance. Copyright © 2015 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Infusing Early Childhood Mental Health into Early Intervention Services

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grabert, John C.

2009-01-01

This article describes the process of enhancing early childhood mental health awareness and skills in non-mental health staff. The author describes a pilot training model, conducted the U.S. Army's Early Intervention Services, that involved: (a) increasing early childhood mental health knowledge through reflective readings, (b) enhancing…

Adverse childhood experiences and the association with ever using alcohol and initiating alcohol use during adolescence.

PubMed

Dube, Shanta R; Miller, Jacqueline W; Brown, David W; Giles, Wayne H; Felitti, Vincent J; Dong, Maxia; Anda, Robert F

2006-04-01

Alcohol is the most common and frequently used drug and has the potential to cause multiple deleterious effects throughout the lifespan. Because early age at initiation of alcohol use increases this potential and programs and laws are in place to attempt to delay the onset of alcohol use, we studied the relationship between multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and both the likelihood of ever drinking and the age at initiating alcohol use. This was a retrospective cohort study of 8417 adult health maintenance organization (HMO) members in California who completed a survey about ACEs, which included childhood abuse and neglect, growing up with various forms of household dysfunction and alcohol use in adolescence and adulthood. The main outcomes measured were ever drinking and age at initiating alcohol use among ever-drinkers for four age categories: < or = 14 years (early adolescence), 15 to 17 years (mid adolescence), and 18 to 20 years (late adolescence); age > or = 21 years was the referent. The relationship between the total number of adverse childhood experiences (ACE score) and early initiation of alcohol use (< or =14 years) among four birth cohorts dating back to 1900 was also examined. Eighty-nine percent of the cohort reported ever drinking; all individual ACEs except physical neglect increased the risk of ever using alcohol (p < .05). Among ever drinkers, initiating alcohol use by age 14 years was increased two- to threefold by individual ACEs (p < .05). ACEs also accounted for a 20% to 70% increased likelihood of alcohol use initiated during mid adolescence (15-17 years). The total number of ACEs (ACE score) had a very strong graded relationship to initiating alcohol use during early adolescence and a robust but somewhat less strong relationship to initiation during mid adolescence. For each of the four birth cohorts, the ACE score had a strong, graded relationship to initiating alcohol use by age 14 years (p < .05). Adverse childhood experiences

Confounding and Statistical Significance of Indirect Effects: Childhood Adversity, Education, Smoking, and Anxious and Depressive Symptomatology.

PubMed

Sheikh, Mashhood Ahmed

2017-01-01

The life course perspective, the risky families model, and stress-and-coping models provide the rationale for assessing the role of smoking as a mediator in the association between childhood adversity and anxious and depressive symptomatology (ADS) in adulthood. However, no previous study has assessed the independent mediating role of smoking in the association between childhood adversity and ADS in adulthood. Moreover, the importance of mediator-response confounding variables has rarely been demonstrated empirically in social and psychiatric epidemiology. The aim of this paper was to (i) assess the mediating role of smoking in adulthood in the association between childhood adversity and ADS in adulthood, and (ii) assess the change in estimates due to different mediator-response confounding factors (education, alcohol intake, and social support). The present analysis used data collected from 1994 to 2008 within the framework of the Tromsø Study ( N = 4,530), a representative prospective cohort study of men and women. Seven childhood adversities (low mother's education, low father's education, low financial conditions, exposure to passive smoke, psychological abuse, physical abuse, and substance abuse distress) were used to create a childhood adversity score. Smoking status was measured at a mean age of 54.7 years (Tromsø IV), and ADS in adulthood was measured at a mean age of 61.7 years (Tromsø V). Mediation analysis was used to assess the indirect effect and the proportion of mediated effect (%) of childhood adversity on ADS in adulthood via smoking in adulthood. The test-retest reliability of smoking was good (Kappa: 0.67, 95% CI: 0.63; 0.71) in this sample. Childhood adversity was associated with a 10% increased risk of smoking in adulthood (Relative risk: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.03; 1.18), and both childhood adversity and smoking in adulthood were associated with greater levels of ADS in adulthood ( p < 0.001). Smoking in adulthood did not significantly mediate the

Confounding and Statistical Significance of Indirect Effects: Childhood Adversity, Education, Smoking, and Anxious and Depressive Symptomatology

PubMed Central

Sheikh, Mashhood Ahmed

2017-01-01

The life course perspective, the risky families model, and stress-and-coping models provide the rationale for assessing the role of smoking as a mediator in the association between childhood adversity and anxious and depressive symptomatology (ADS) in adulthood. However, no previous study has assessed the independent mediating role of smoking in the association between childhood adversity and ADS in adulthood. Moreover, the importance of mediator-response confounding variables has rarely been demonstrated empirically in social and psychiatric epidemiology. The aim of this paper was to (i) assess the mediating role of smoking in adulthood in the association between childhood adversity and ADS in adulthood, and (ii) assess the change in estimates due to different mediator-response confounding factors (education, alcohol intake, and social support). The present analysis used data collected from 1994 to 2008 within the framework of the Tromsø Study (N = 4,530), a representative prospective cohort study of men and women. Seven childhood adversities (low mother's education, low father's education, low financial conditions, exposure to passive smoke, psychological abuse, physical abuse, and substance abuse distress) were used to create a childhood adversity score. Smoking status was measured at a mean age of 54.7 years (Tromsø IV), and ADS in adulthood was measured at a mean age of 61.7 years (Tromsø V). Mediation analysis was used to assess the indirect effect and the proportion of mediated effect (%) of childhood adversity on ADS in adulthood via smoking in adulthood. The test-retest reliability of smoking was good (Kappa: 0.67, 95% CI: 0.63; 0.71) in this sample. Childhood adversity was associated with a 10% increased risk of smoking in adulthood (Relative risk: 1.10, 95% CI: 1.03; 1.18), and both childhood adversity and smoking in adulthood were associated with greater levels of ADS in adulthood (p < 0.001). Smoking in adulthood did not significantly mediate the

Early Childhood Diplomacy: Policy Planning for Early Childhood Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vargas-Barón, Emily; Diehl, Kristel

2018-01-01

Children who are well nurtured, appropriately cared for, and provided with positive learning opportunities in their early years have a better chance of becoming healthy and productive citizens of nations and of the world. This article reviews the art and science of policy planning for early childhood development (ECD) from a diplomacy perspective.…

Interaction of FKBP5 with Childhood Adversity on Risk for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

PubMed Central

Xie, Pingxing; Kranzler, Henry R; Poling, James; Stein, Murray B; Anton, Raymond F; Farrer, Lindsay A; Gelernter, Joel

2010-01-01

FKBP5 regulates the cortisol-binding affinity and nuclear translocation of the glucocorticoid receptor. Polymorphisms at the FKBP5 locus have been associated with increased recurrence risk of depressive episodes and rapid response to antidepressant treatment. A recent study showed that FKBP5 genotypes moderated the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms associated with childhood maltreatment. One thousand one hundred forty-three European Americans (EAs) and 1284 African Americans (AAs) recruited for studies of the genetics of substance dependence were also screened for lifetime PTSD. Four single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in FKBP5, rs3800373, rs9296158, rs1360780, and rs9470080, were genotyped on the complete sample. Logistic regression analyses were performed to explore the interactive effect of FKBP5 polymorphisms and childhood adversity on the risk for PTSD. After correction for multiple testing, childhood adversity significantly increased the risk for PTSD. FKBP5 genotypes were not associated with the development of the disorder. In AAs, one of the SNPs, rs9470080, moderated the risk of PTSD that was associated with childhood abuse. Without childhood adverse experiences, participants with the TT genotype of this SNP had the lowest risk for PTSD, whereas they had the highest risk for PTSD after childhood adversity exposure. In addition, in EAs, alcohol dependence was observed to interact with childhood adverse experiences, and also FKBP5 polymorphisms, to increase the risk for PTSD. This study provides further evidence of a gene × environment effect of FKBP5 and childhood abuse on the risk for PTSD in AAs. Further study is required in other populations. PMID:20393453

Auditory-neurophysiological responses to speech during early childhood: Effects of background noise

PubMed Central

White-Schwoch, Travis; Davies, Evan C.; Thompson, Elaine C.; Carr, Kali Woodruff; Nicol, Trent; Bradlow, Ann R.; Kraus, Nina

2015-01-01

Early childhood is a critical period of auditory learning, during which children are constantly mapping sounds to meaning. But learning rarely occurs under ideal listening conditions—children are forced to listen against a relentless din. This background noise degrades the neural coding of these critical sounds, in turn interfering with auditory learning. Despite the importance of robust and reliable auditory processing during early childhood, little is known about the neurophysiology underlying speech processing in children so young. To better understand the physiological constraints these adverse listening scenarios impose on speech sound coding during early childhood, auditory-neurophysiological responses were elicited to a consonant-vowel syllable in quiet and background noise in a cohort of typically-developing preschoolers (ages 3–5 yr). Overall, responses were degraded in noise: they were smaller, less stable across trials, slower, and there was poorer coding of spectral content and the temporal envelope. These effects were exacerbated in response to the consonant transition relative to the vowel, suggesting that the neural coding of spectrotemporally-dynamic speech features is more tenuous in noise than the coding of static features—even in children this young. Neural coding of speech temporal fine structure, however, was more resilient to the addition of background noise than coding of temporal envelope information. Taken together, these results demonstrate that noise places a neurophysiological constraint on speech processing during early childhood by causing a breakdown in neural processing of speech acoustics. These results may explain why some listeners have inordinate difficulties understanding speech in noise. Speech-elicited auditory-neurophysiological responses offer objective insight into listening skills during early childhood by reflecting the integrity of neural coding in quiet and noise; this paper documents typical response properties

Childhood Immunization: A Key Component of Early Childhood Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Messonnier, Nancy

2017-01-01

Physical health is a key component of early childhood development and school readiness. By keeping children healthy and decreasing the chances of disease outbreaks, immunizations help early childhood programs create a safe environment for children. While overall vaccination rates are high nationally for most vaccines routinely recommended for…

Gender Differences in the Physical and Psychological Manifestation of Childhood Trauma and/or Adversity in People with Psychosis.

PubMed

Sweeney, Shaun; Air, Tracy; Zannettino, Lana; Galletly, Cherrie

2015-01-01

The link between childhood trauma and/or adversity and risk of psychosis is well known. Our aim was to determine the prevalence of childhood trauma and/or adversity in people who have psychotic disorders and to investigate the association between childhood trauma and/or adversity and a range of social and health measures. Participants (n = 391, 42% male) were specifically asked about any experience of childhood trauma and/or adversity. Respondents provided information about education, employment, physical health, and health service utilization. Univariate analyses revealed that childhood trauma and/or adversity was associated with poorer levels of self-reported physical health and social problems. This includes the experience of chronic pain, headaches, arthritis, asthma, and victimization/stigma in men. Participants with a childhood trauma and/or adversity history indicated higher rates of lifetime suicide attempts with women reporting more lifetime depressive symptoms. Multivariate analyses revealed differing profiles in relation to physical and psychological health variable between males and females. Males with the experience of childhood trauma and/or adversity were significantly more likely to report cardiovascular/stroke issues, migraines and anhedonia. Females with the experience of childhood trauma and/or adversity were more likely to report a lifetime history of elevated mood and to be married or in a de facto relationship. There has been very little research into the assessment and treatment of the effects of childhood trauma and/or adversity in adults with psychosis. Childhood trauma and/or adversity may contribute to higher rates of self-reported poor health in men and is associated with increased depression in women. Our findings suggest that interventions to address the effects of past trauma are urgently needed.

Moderate Childhood Stress Buffers Against Depressive Response to Proximal Stressors: A Multi-Wave Prospective Study of Early Adolescents

PubMed Central

Shapero, Benjamin G.; Hamilton, Jessica L.; Stange, Jonathan P.; Liu, Richard T.; Y.Abramson, Lyn; Alloy, Lauren B.

2015-01-01

Although the majority of research in the field has focused on childhood stressors as a risk factor for psychopathology, a burgeoning body of literature has focused on the possible steeling effect of moderate types of stressful events. The current study investigated the effects of proximal life stressors on prospective changes in depressive symptoms, and whether a history of moderate childhood adversity would moderate this relationship in a multi-wave study of a diverse community sample of early adolescents (N = 163, 52% female, 51% Caucasian). Hierarchical linear modeling was run with four waves of data. Adolescents with greater moderately severe early life events evinced a blunted depressive symptom response to changes in proximal stressful events in the previous 9 months, compared to those with fewer early moderately severe experiences of adversity. These results held after controlling for between-subject factors such as race, gender, severe early life stress, and average stress over the four waves of data. Findings indicate that greater exposure to moderate childhood stressors may buffer against the negative effects of subsequent stressors, suggesting the importance of a nuanced developmental approach to studying the effects of early life stress. PMID:25911194

Dying to be famous: retrospective cohort study of rock and pop star mortality and its association with adverse childhood experiences

PubMed Central

Bellis, Mark A; Hughes, Karen; Sharples, Olivia; Hennell, Tom; Hardcastle, Katherine A

2012-01-01

Objectives Rock and pop fame is associated with risk taking, substance use and premature mortality. We examine relationships between fame and premature mortality and test how such relationships vary with type of performer (eg, solo or band member) and nationality and whether cause of death is linked with prefame (adverse childhood) experiences. Design A retrospective cohort analysis based on biographical data. An actuarial methodology compares postfame mortality to matched general populations. Cox survival and logistic regression techniques examine risk and protective factors for survival and links between adverse childhood experiences and cause of death, respectively. Setting North America and Europe. Participants 1489 rock and pop stars reaching fame between 1956 and 2006. Outcomes Stars’ postfame mortality relative to age-, sex- and ethnicity-matched populations (USA and UK); variations in survival with performer type, and in cause of mortality with exposure to adverse childhood experiences. Results Rock/pop star mortality increases relative to the general population with time since fame. Increases are greater in North American stars and those with solo careers. Relative mortality begins to recover 25 years after fame in European but not North American stars. Those reaching fame from 1980 onwards have better survival rates. For deceased stars, cause of death was more likely to be substance use or risk-related in those with more adverse childhood experiences. Conclusions Relationships between fame and mortality vary with performers’ characteristics. Adverse experiences in early life may leave some predisposed to health-damaging behaviours, with fame and extreme wealth providing greater opportunities to engage in risk-taking. Millions of youths wish to emulate their icons. It is important they recognise that substance use and risk-taking may be rooted in childhood adversity rather than seeing them as symbols of success. PMID:23253869

Unstable child welfare permanent placements and early adolescent physical and mental health: The roles of adverse childhood experiences and post-traumatic stress.

PubMed

Villodas, Miguel T; Cromer, Kelly D; Moses, Jacqueline O; Litrownik, Alan J; Newton, Rae R; Davis, Inger P

2016-12-01

Although researchers have found that child welfare placement disruptions are associated with elevated youth physical and mental health problems, the mechanisms that explain this association have not been previously studied. The present study built on a previous investigation of the physical and behavioral consequences of long-term permanent placement patterns among youth who participated in the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN). The current investigation (n=251) aimed to (a) report the early adolescent living situations of youth with different long-term placement patterns, and (b) to delineate the roles of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and post-traumatic stress (PTS) reactions in the association between unstable long-term placement patterns and physical and mental health problems during the transition to adolescence. Information about youth's living situations, ACEs, and physical and mental health was gathered prospectively from child protective services records and biannual caregiver and youth interviews when youth were 4-14 years old. The majority of youth remained with the same caregiver during early adolescence, but youth with chronically unstable permanent placement patterns continued to experience instability. Path analyses revealed that ACEs mediated the association between unstable placement patterns and elevated mental, but not physical, health problems during late childhood. Additionally, late childhood PTS mediated the association between unstable placement patterns and subsequent escalations in physical and mental health problems during the transition to adolescence. Findings highlight the importance of long-term permanency planning for youth who enter the child welfare system and emphasize the importance of trauma-focused assessment and intervention for these youth. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Early Childhood Intervention and Early Childhood Special Education in Turkey within the Scope of the Developmental System Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Diken, Ibrahim H.; Bayhan, Pinar; Turan, Figen; Sipal, R. Firat; Sucuoglu, Bulbin; Ceber-Bakkaloglu, Hatice; Gunel, Mintaze Kerem; Kara, Ozgun Kaya

2012-01-01

The purpose of this article was to provide an overview of early childhood intervention and early childhood special education (ECI/ECSE) services and practices in Turkey by using the Developmental System Approach (M. J. Guralnick, 2001). After pointing out the history of early childhood and ECI/ECSE services and current legislations with regard to…

Parental childhood adversity, depressive symptoms, and parenting quality: Effects on toddler self-regulation in Child Welfare Services-involved families

PubMed Central

Spieker, Susan J.; Oxford, Monica L.; Fleming, Charles B.; Lohr, Mary Jane

2018-01-01

Parents who are child welfare services-involved (CWSI) often have a history of childhood adversity and depressive symptoms. Both affect parenting quality, which in turn influences child adaptive functioning. We tested a model of the relations between parental depression and child regulatory outcomes first proposed by Lyons-Ruth and colleagues (2002). We hypothesized that both parental depression and parenting quality mediate the effects of parental early adversity on offspring regulatory outcomes. Participants were 123 CWSI parents and their toddlers who were assessed three times over a period of six months. At T1, parents reported on their childhood adversity and current depressive symptoms. At T2, parents’ sensitivity to their child’s distress and non-distress cues were rated from a videotaped teaching task. At T3, observers rated children’s emotional regulation, orientation/engagement, and secure base behavior. The results of a path model partly supported hypotheses. Parent childhood adversity was associated with current depressive symptoms, which in turn was related to parent sensitivity to child distress but not non-distress. Sensitivity to distress also predicted secure base behavior. Depression directly predicted orientation/engagement, also predicted by sensitivity to non-distress. Sensitivity to distress predicted emotion regulation and orientation/engagement. Results are discussed in terms of intervention approaches for CWSI families. PMID:29266280

Tailoring health-related messages for young adults with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

PubMed

Karatekin, Canan; Ahluwalia, Rohini; Desir, Michelle

2018-06-01

The goal was to identify factors that might affect likelihood of seeking health-related interventions for young adults with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). We tested whether ACEs were associated with (1) regulatory focus (tendency toward promoting good outcomes versus preventing bad outcomes), and (2) patient activation (the intention to take active charge of one's health). We further tested whether promotion and prevention and patient activation were associated with each other and with health. Students at a public university (N = 321) completed online questionnaires assessing ACEs, regulatory focus, patient activation, and health. Greater childhood adversity showed small but significant associations with being a less activated patient and being less focused on promoting good outcomes. In contrast, greater childhood adversity had a much stronger association with focusing on preventing negative outcomes. Students with a more significant mental health history were more likely to have been exposed to childhood adversity, to be less activated patients, and to focus more on prevention. Results suggest that using a prevention focus may be effective in health messages aimed to reach individuals with high levels of ACEs. Furthermore, individuals with high levels of ACEs may benefit from interventions aimed at increasing patient activation. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Childhood adversity and adult depression among the incarcerated: differential exposure and vulnerability by race/ethnicity and gender.

PubMed

Roxburgh, Susan; MacArthur, Kelly Rhea

2014-08-01

The relationship between childhood adversity and adult depression is well-established but less is known about the association between childhood adversity and adult depression among the incarcerated. In this paper, we examine differential exposure and vulnerability to childhood adversity by race/ethnicity and gender on adult depression among the incarcerated in the United States. We address three research questions: does exposure to childhood adverse experiences vary by race/ethnicity and gender? Is there an association between these childhood adverse events and depression and does the strength of the association vary by the specific adverse experiences? And does vulnerability to childhood adversity vary by gender and race/ethnicity? Using the 2004 Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities (SI-SFCF), we measure four key childhood adverse events - parental/caretaker substance abuse, physical assault, having been placed in foster care, and sexual assault. We use ordinary least squares regression and a series of interaction effect analyses to examine differential exposure and vulnerability to the four childhood adverse experiences by race/ethnicity and gender. Incarcerated women are more likely to report parental substance abuse, but all inmates/prisoners are similarly vulnerable to this experience. For the other three adverse experiences measured, we find that there are important racial/ethnic and gender differences in both exposure and vulnerability. African American men and women are more vulnerable to the effects of physical and sexual victimization than White and Hispanic men and women. Women are much more likely to be exposed to sexual victimization, but men who report this experience are significantly more depressed. Hispanic women and White men and women are more likely to report foster care, but all inmates/prisoners who report foster care experiences are significantly more depressed than other inmates/prisoners, with the exception of

Commentary: Childhood Exposure to Environmental Adversity and the Well-Being of People with Intellectual Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Emerson, E.

2013-01-01

People with intellectual disabilities have poorer health than their non-disabled peers. They are also more likely to be exposed to a wide range of environmental adversities in childhood. Research undertaken in the general population has demonstrated that exposure to environmental adversity in childhood can have an adverse impact on health and…

Testing and testing positive: childhood adversities and later life HIV status among Kenyan women and their partners.

PubMed

Goodman, Michael L; Raimer-Goodman, Lauren; Chen, Catherine X; Grouls, Astrid; Gitari, Stanley; Keiser, Philip H

2017-12-01

Adverse childhood experiences are a critical feature of lifelong health. No research assesses whether childhood adversities predict HIV-testing behaviors, and little research analyzes childhood adversities and later life HIV status in sub-Saharan Africa. We use regression models with cross-sectional data from a representative sample (n = 1974) to analyze whether adverse childhood experiences, separately or as cumulative exposures, predict reports of later life HIV testing and testing HIV+ among semi-rural Kenyan women and their partners. No significant correlation was observed between thirteen cumulative childhood adversities and reporting prior HIV testing for respondent or partner. Separately, childhood sexual abuse and emotional neglect predicted lower odds of reporting having previously been tested for HIV. Witnessing household violence during one's childhood predicted significantly higher odds of reporting HIV+. Sexual abuse predicted higher odds of reporting a partner tested HIV+. Preventing sexual abuse and household violence may improve HIV testing and test outcomes among Kenyan women. More research is required to understand pathways between adverse childhood experiences and partner selection within Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa, and data presented here suggest understanding pathways may help improve HIV outcomes. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Faculty of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Stress and resource pathways connecting early socioeconomic adversity to young adults' physical health risk.

PubMed

Wickrama, Kandauda K A S; Lee, Tae Kyoung; O'Neal, Catherine Walker; Kwon, Josephine A

2015-05-01

Although research has established the impact of early stress, including stressful life contexts, and early resources, such as educational attainment, on various adolescent health outcomes, previous research has not adequately investigated "integrative models" incorporating both stress and resource mediational pathways to explain how early socioeconomic adversity impacts physical health outcomes, particularly in early life stages. Data on early childhood/adolescent stress and socioeconomic resources as well as biomarkers indicating physical health status in young adulthood were collected from 11,798 respondents (54 % female) over a 13-year period from youth participating in the National Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Physical health risk in young adulthood was measured using a composite index of nine regulatory biomarkers of cardiovascular and metabolic systems. Heterogeneity in stress and socioeconomic resource pathways was assessed using latent class analysis to identify clusters, or classes, of stress and socioeconomic resource trajectories. The influence of early socioeconomic adversity on young adults' physical health risk, as measured by biomarkers, was estimated, and the role of stress and socioeconomic resource trajectory classes as linking mechanisms was assessed. There was evidence for the influence of early socioeconomic adversity on young adults' physical health risk directly and indirectly through stress and socioeconomic resource trajectory classes over the early life course. These findings suggest that health models should be broadened to incorporate both stress and resource experiences simultaneously. Furthermore, these findings have prevention and intervention implications, including the importance of early socioeconomic adversity and key intervention points for "turning" the trajectories of at-risk youth.

Girls’ childhood trajectories of disruptive behavior predict adjustment problems in early adolescence

PubMed Central

van der Molen, Elsa; Blokland, Arjan A. J.; Hipwell, Alison E.; Vermeiren, Robert R.J.M.; Doreleijers, Theo A.H.; Loeber, Rolf

2014-01-01

Background It is widely recognized that early onset of disruptive behavior is linked to a variety of detrimental outcomes in males later in life. In contrast, little is known about the association between girls’ childhood trajectories of disruptive behavior and adjustment problems in early adolescence. Methods The current study used 9 waves of data from the ongoing Pittsburgh Girls Study. A semi-parametric group based model was used to identify trajectories of disruptive behavior in 1,513 girls from age 6 to 12 years. Adjustment problems were characterized by depression, self-harm, PTSD, substance use, interpersonal aggression, sexual behavior, affiliation with delinquent peers, and academic achievement at ages 13 and 14. Results Three trajectories of childhood disruptive behavior were identified: low, medium, and high. Girls in the high group were at increased risk for depression, self-harm, PTSD, illegal substance use, interpersonal aggression, early and risky sexual behavior, and lower academic achievement. The likelihood of multiple adjustment problems increased with trajectories reflecting higher levels of disruptive behavior. Conclusion Girls following the high childhood trajectory of disruptive behavior require early intervention programs to prevent multiple, adverse outcomes in adolescence and further escalation in adulthood. PMID:25302849

The relationship between childhood adversities and fibromyalgia in the general population.

PubMed

Varinen, Aleksi; Kosunen, Elise; Mattila, Kari; Koskela, Tuomas; Sumanen, Markku

2017-08-01

Fibromyalgia is a syndrome characterized by widespread pain and a variety of somatic symptoms. The international prevalence of fibromyalgia is 2-5%, but its current prevalence in Finland is unclear. Various adversities are linked to the onset of fibromyalgia. However, there is need for more data regarding the association between childhood physical abuse and fibromyalgia. Further, the association of childhood emotional stressors and fibromyalgia is disputed. The aim of the current study is to produce more information about that relationship using data from the Health and Social Support (HeSSup) Study. HeSSup is a postal study consisting of a random sample of the Finnish population. The study setting is cross-sectional. Participants in the study were asked if they have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia. Those responding affirmatively were classified as fibromyalgia patients. Six childhood adversities were enquired, and the relationship between fibromyalgia and these events were analysed by cross tabulation and logistic regression. There were associations between examined adversities and fibromyalgia before and after adjustments for demographic features and depression (being afraid of a family member: odds ratio after adjustment 1.60, 95% CI 1.28-2.01; long-lasting financial difficulties 1.45, 1.18-1.77; serious conflicts in the family 1.40, 1.14-1.72; parental divorce 1.34, 1.05-1.72; serious or chronic illnesses in the family 1.27, 1.05-1.55; alcohol problems in the family 1.25, 1.02-1.53). All six enquired adversities were associated with fibromyalgia after adjustments. These findings emphasize the importance of preventing adverse childhood experiences. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Childhood adversities predict strongly the use of psychotropic drugs in adulthood: a population-based cohort study of 24,284 Finns.

PubMed

Koskenvuo, Karoliina; Koskenvuo, Markku

2015-04-01

Exposure to adverse childhood experiences has been shown to be associated with negative health outcomes including mental health problems, but only a few studies with register-based data have used psychotropic drugs as an outcome variable. The purpose of this study is to examine whether adverse emotional childhood experiences, such as serious conflicts in the family and frequent fear of a family member, predict the use of psychotropic drugs in adulthood. In addition, the association of a child-parent relationship during childhood with the use of psychotropic drugs is studied. The participants of the population-based Health and Social Support Study (24,284 working aged Finns) were followed up for 9 years. The information on childhood experiences and child-parent relationships was obtained from the questionnaires in 1998 and 2003. The number of psychotropic purchases (antipsychotics, drugs for bipolar disorder, antidepressants, anxiolytics, hypnotics and sedatives) was obtained from the National-Drug-Prescription-Register. Logistic and multinomial regression models were used. A graded association between childhood adversities and the use of psychotropic drugs was found, even after adjustments for occupational training, work status, recent life events and health behaviour. Frequent fear of a family member showed the strongest association: the OR for multiple use of antidepressants was 3.08 (95% CI 2.72 to 3.49) and 2.69 (2.27 to 3.20) for multiple use of anxiolytics. Use of psychotropic drugs was clearly increased among those with poor child-parent relationship and multiple childhood adversities. The results highlight the effect of environmental factors during childhood on mental health and the need for early recognition of families at risk. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Hypoplasia-associated Severe Early Childhood Caries – A Proposed Definition

PubMed Central

Caufield, P.W.; Li, Y.; Bromage, T.G.

2012-01-01

We propose a new classification of severe early childhood caries (S-ECC): hypoplasia-associated severe early childhood caries (HAS-ECC). This form of caries affects mostly young children living at or below poverty, characterized by structurally damaged primary teeth that are particularly vulnerable to dental caries. These predisposing developmental dental defects are mainly permutations of enamel hypoplasia (EHP). Anthropologists and dental researchers consider EHP an indicator for infant and maternal stresses including malnutrition, a variety of illnesses, and adverse birthing conditions. Differentiation of HAS-ECC from other forms of early childhood caries is warranted because of its distinct etiology, clinical presentation, and eventual management. Defining HAS-ECC has important clinical implications: Therapies that control or prevent other types of caries are likely to be less effective with HAS-ECC because the structural integrity of the teeth is compromised prior to their emergence into the oral cavity. By the time these children present to the dentist, the treatment options often become limited to surgical management under general anesthesia. To prevent HAS-ECC, dentists must partner with other health providers to develop interventions that begin with pregnant mothers, with the aim of eliminating or ameliorating the covariates accompanying poverty, including better pre- and post-natal care and nutrition. PMID:22529242

Early Childhood Education in Taiwan.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barclay, Lisa K.

1989-01-01

Describes early childhood education in Taiwan, focusing on living patterns and child care arrangements, the position of the individual within the family and community, and the application of cultural norms to early childhood education. Compares the behavior of Chinese preschool children to that of American preschool children. (RJC)

Obesity and type 2 diabetes risk in midadult life: the role of childhood adversity.

PubMed

Thomas, Claudia; Hyppönen, Elina; Power, Chris

2008-05-01

Child abuse has been associated with poorer physical health in adulthood, but less is known about childhood adversity more broadly, including neglect and family problems, or the pathways from adversity to adult disease. We have examined how different stressful emotional or neglectful childhood adversities are related to adiposity and glucose control in midadulthood, taking into account childhood factors, and whether the relationships are mediated by adult health behaviors and socioeconomic position. This was a prospective longitudinal study of 9310 members of the 1958 British birth cohort who participated in a biomedical interview at 45 years of age. Primary outcomes consisted of continuous measures of BMI, waist circumference, and glycosylated hemoglobin at 45 years and categorical indicators: total obesity (BMI > or = 30), central obesity (waist circumference: > or = 102 cm for men and > or = 88 cm for women), and glycosylated hemoglobin level of > or = 6. The risk of obesity increased by 20% to 50% for several adversities (physical abuse, verbal abuse, witnessed abuse, humiliation, neglect, strict upbringing, physical punishment, conflict or tension, low parental aspirations or interest in education, hardly takes outings with parents, and father hardly reads to child). Adversities with the strongest associations with adiposity (eg, physical abuse) tended to be associated with glycosylated hemoglobin levels of > or = 6, but in most cases associations were explained by adjustment for adulthood mediators such as adiposity. Effects of other adversities reflecting less severe emotional neglect and family environment were largely explained by childhood socioeconomic factors. Some childhood adversities increase the risk of obesity in adulthood and thereby increase the risk for type 2 diabetes. Research is needed to understand the interrelatedness of adversities, the social context of their occurrence, and trajectories from adversity to adult disease.

Adverse childhood experiences are associated with irritable bowel syndrome and gastrointestinal symptom severity.

PubMed

Park, S H; Videlock, E J; Shih, W; Presson, A P; Mayer, E A; Chang, L

2016-08-01

Early adverse life events (EALs) are associated with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Exposure to EALs as assessed by the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) questionnaire is associated with greater disease prevalence, but ACE has not been studied in gastrointestinal disorders. Study aims were to: (i) Estimate the prevalence of EALs in the IBS patients using the ACE questionnaire; (ii) Determine correlations between ACE and Early Trauma Inventory Self Report-Short Form (ETI-SR) scores to confirm its validity in IBS; and (iii) Correlate ACE scores with IBS symptom severity. A total of 148 IBS (73% women, mean age = 31 years) and 154 HCs (59% women, mean age = 30 years) completed the ACE and ETI-SR between June 2010 and April 2015. These surveys measured EALs before age 18 in the domains of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, and general trauma. IBS and abdominal pain severity was measured by a 20-point scale (0 = none, 20 = worst symptoms). The ACE score increased the odds of having IBS (odds ratio [OR] = 2.05, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.21-3.48, p = 0.008). Household mental illness (p < 0.001), emotional abuse (p = 0.004), and incarcerated household member (p = 0.019) were significant predictors of IBS. Adverse childhood experiences and ETI-SR scores were strongly correlated (r = 0.59, p < 0.001). ACE, but not ETI-SR, modestly correlated with IBS severity (r = 0.17, p = 0.036) and abdominal pain (r = 0.20, p = 0.015). The ACE questionnaire is a useful instrument to measure EALs in IBS based on its use in large studies, its ability to measure prevalence across different EAL domains, and its correlation with symptom severity. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Early Childhood Education: A Workbook for Administrators.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hewes, Dorothy; Hartman, Barbara

Business management theory and principles as applied to the administration of early childhood programs are presented in this workbook. Following a brief survey of the historical background of early childhood education and current early childhood programs, information and guidance to help plan, operate, and evaluate program facilities are provided.…

Dispersing Waves: Innovation in Early Childhood Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meade, Anne, Ed.

2010-01-01

Early childhood education Centres of Innovation (COI) were established in 2002 as part of the 10-year plan for early childhood education, "Pathways to the Future/Nga Huarahi Arataki." In COI projects, innovative early childhood teaching teams reflect on and investigate their practices through action research, and share their findings…

Taiwanese Early Childhood Educators' Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsu, Ching-Yun

2008-01-01

This study was designed based on a qualitative paradigm to explore the professional development of Taiwanese early childhood educators. The method of phenomenology was employed. The main research question addressed was "How do early childhood educators construe their professional development experience?" Seven Taiwanese early childhood…

Childhood Adversities and Traumata in Lebanon: A National Study

PubMed Central

Itani, Lynn; Haddad, Youmna C; Fayyad, John; Karam, Aimee; Karam, Elie

2014-01-01

Background: The goal of this paper is to map the total occurrence and evaluate the risk of co-occurrence of childhood adversities (CA) and a wide variety of childhood traumatic events (including war) in a national sample. Method: The nationally representative sample included 2,857 respondents and the instrument used was the Composite International Diagnostic Interview which screened for all CAs and traumatic events. Results: 27.9% experienced CAs; the most common were parental death and parental mental/substance use disorder. 70.6% experienced a war-related traumatic event during their lifetime, and around half of them (38.1%) experienced it below the age of 18 years. 51.3% of the subjects experienced a traumatic event not related to war during their lifetime, and 19.2% experienced it before the age of 18 years. Sexual abuse, being a refugee during war, and experiencing a natural disaster were associated with female gender. Having any CA was associated with active war exposure (OR: 4.2, CI: 2.0-8.6); war-related direct personal trauma (OR: 3.9, CI: 1.5-10.0); war-related trauma to others (OR: 2.4, CI: 1.3-4.4); non-war direct personal trauma (OR: 3.8, CI: 2.0-7.4); and any non-war childhood traumatic event (OR: 1.9, CI: 1.1-3.1). Conclusion:Childhood is awash with adversities and traumatic events that co-occur and should be measured simultaneously; otherwise, the effects of a subset of traumata or adversities could be wrongly thought to be the contributor to negative outcomes under study. PMID:25356085

Childhood and Adolescent Adversity and Cardiometabolic Outcomes: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association.

PubMed

Suglia, Shakira F; Koenen, Karestan C; Boynton-Jarrett, Renée; Chan, Paul S; Clark, Cari J; Danese, Andrea; Faith, Myles S; Goldstein, Benjamin I; Hayman, Laura L; Isasi, Carmen R; Pratt, Charlotte A; Slopen, Natalie; Sumner, Jennifer A; Turer, Aslan; Turer, Christy B; Zachariah, Justin P

2018-01-30

Adverse experiences in childhood and adolescence, defined as subjectively perceived threats to the safety or security of the child's bodily integrity, family, or social structures, are known to be associated with cardiometabolic outcomes over the life course into adulthood. This American Heart Association scientific statement reviews the scientific literature on the influence of childhood adversity on cardiometabolic outcomes that constitute the greatest public health burden in the United States, including obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and cardiovascular disease. This statement also conceptually outlines pathways linking adversity to cardiometabolic health, identifies evidence gaps, and provides suggestions for future research to inform practice and policy. We note that, despite a lack of objective agreement on what subjectively qualifies as exposure to childhood adversity and a dearth of prospective studies, substantial evidence documents an association between childhood adversity and cardiometabolic outcomes across the life course. Future studies that focus on mechanisms, resiliency, and vulnerability factors would further strengthen the evidence and provide much-needed information on targets for effective interventions. Given that childhood adversities affect cardiometabolic health and multiple health domains across the life course, interventions that ameliorate these initial upstream exposures may be more appropriate than interventions remediating downstream cardiovascular disease risk factor effects later in life. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

Association of adverse childhood experiences and health risk behaviors among young adults visiting a regional primary healthcare center, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

PubMed

Musa, Sanjin; Peek-Asa, Corrine; Jovanović, Nina; Selimović, Edin

2018-01-01

Many studies have linked adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to long-term health outcomes, as well as health risk behaviors. In the post-war period in Bosnia and Herzegovina, many young people grew up in an environment of deteriorated living standards due to high unemployment and economic insecurity. The objectives of the study were to: 1) describe the health risk behaviors of young adults accessing primary healthcare; and 2) examine associations of these risk factors with adverse childhood experiences in this context. This was a cross-sectional survey, conducted from April to October 2014. Participants were recruited from the Primary Healthcare Center Zenica. Patients between the ages of 18 and 24 were eligible for inclusion. The informed consent and self-administered questionnaire were offered to patients during clinic intake. The questionnaire contained questions on sexual and reproductive health, use of alcohol and drugs, dating violence, and adverse childhood experiences. During the study period 520 questionnaires were distributed, and 400 complete surveys were returned, for a response rate of 76.9%. Among the 400 respondents, 166 were males (41.5%) and 234 were females (58.5%). Our study showed that 48.7% of respondents had experienced some form of childhood adversity. Emotional neglect was the most common type of adverse childhood experience (25.6%) and was significantly more prevalent among females. Our study indicated that more than 15% of respondents had witnessed domestic violence. Overall, ACEs were associated with increased odds of early sex initiation, alcohol use, drug use, and dating violence, although some of these associations did not reach statistical significance. Emotional neglect was the exception, and reporting emotional neglect was associated with a significantly elevated odds ratio for all four of the health risk behaviors. Emotional abuse was associated with an increased odds of drug abuse (OR = 2.78; 95% CI = 1.31-5.90) and dating

Childhood Adversity and Self-Care Education for Undergraduate Social Work and Human Services Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newcomb, Michelle; Burton, Judith; Edwards, Niki

2017-01-01

Many students pursuing social work and human services courses have experienced adverse childhoods. This article focuses on their learning about self-care, an important skill for future practice. Interviews with 20 undergraduate students with a history of childhood adversity found unmet needs both for conceptualizing self-care and developing…

Neighborhood Collective Efficacy Moderates the Association between Maternal Adverse Childhood Experiences and Marital Conflict.

PubMed

Madigan, Sheri; Wade, Mark; Plamondon, André; Jenkins, Jennifer M

2016-06-01

In a socio-demographically diverse sample of 501 caregivers participating in a longitudinal birth cohort study during the childbearing years, we examined whether neighborhood collective efficacy moderated the association between maternal adverse childhood experience (ACEs) and marital conflict. Maternal ACEs were assessed via retrospective reports. Neighborhood collective efficacy was measured via maternal and paternal reports at 2 months, and maternal reports of marital conflict were collected at infant age 2 and 18 months. Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that maternal ACEs were associated with increased marital conflict. Neighborhood collective efficacy moderated the association between early maternal ACEs and marital conflict, such that mothers experiencing ACEs had lower levels of marital conflict when exposed to high levels of neighborhood collective efficacy. Results suggest that extra-familial sources of social support and control, such as feelings of security, trust, order, and connectedness with others, may buffer the effects of early adversity on marital discord. © Society for Community Research and Action 2016.

Wyoming Early Childhood Readiness Standards.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wyoming State Dept. of Education, Cheyenne.

Because children entering kindergarten come with a variety of preschool and home experiences, and accordingly, with varying levels of school readiness, the Wyoming Early Childhood Readiness Standards have been developed to provide a more consistent definition of school readiness. The goal for the Standards is to provide early childhood educators…

Early Childhood Inclusion in Spain

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giné, Climent; Balcells-Balcells, Anna; Cañadas, Margarita; Paniagua, Gema

2016-01-01

This article describes early childhood inclusion in educational settings in Spain. First, we address the legislative framework of preschool education in Spain and offer a brief analysis of some relevant issues, including the current situation of early childhood education and inclusion at this stage. Second, current policies and practices relating…

Teachers in Early Childhood Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kilderry, Anna

2014-01-01

This paper examines teacher accountability and authority in early childhood policy. It reports on data from a study that investigated the influences affecting early childhood teacher decision-making at the preschool level in Victoria, Australia. Using a question raised by Ball "Where are the teachers in all this [policy]?" provided a…

Early childhood predictors of early onset of smoking: a birth prospective study.

PubMed

Hayatbakhsh, Reza; Mamun, Abdullah A; Williams, Gail M; O'Callaghan, Michael J; Najman, Jake M

2013-10-01

Early onset of smoking is associated with subsequent abuse of other substances and development of negative health outcomes. This study aimed to examine early life predictors of onset of smoking in an Australian young cohort. Data were from the Mater Hospital and University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy (MUSP), a population-based prospective birth cohort study (1981-2012). The present study is based on a cohort of 3714 young adults who self-reported smoking status and age of onset of smoking at the 21-year follow-up. Of these, data were available for 3039 on early childhood factors collected between the baseline and 14-year follow-up of the study. Of 3714 young adults, 49.6% (49.9% males and 49.3% females) reported having ever smoked cigarettes. For those who had ever smoked, mean and median ages at first smoke were 15.5 and 16.0years, respectively. In multivariate Cox proportional hazard analysis mother's education, change in maternal marital status, maternal cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption, maternal depression and child externalizing when the child was 5years statistically significantly predicted early onset of smoking. The data suggest that individuals exposed to personal and environmental risk factors during the early stage of childhood are at increased risk of initiation to cigarette smoking at an earlier age. Identification of the pathways of association between these early life factors and initiation to cigarette smoking may help reduce risk of tobacco smoking in adolescents and its adverse consequences. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pathways Linking Adverse Childhood Experiences to Cigarette Smoking Among Young Black Men: a Prospective Analysis of the Role of Sleep Problems and Delayed Reward Discounting.

PubMed

Oshri, Assaf; Kogan, Steven; Liu, Sihong; Sweet, Lawrence; Mackillop, James

2017-12-01

African American men experience increases in smoking during the young adult transition. Exposure to childhood adversity, a risk factor which disproportionately affects African American men, has been identified as a robust precursor to health risk behavior in general and cigarette smoking in particular. The intermediate mechanisms that transmit the influence of early adversity to smoking behavior are not well understood. We tested a model of the escalation of smoking behaviors among young adult African American men, investigating sleep disturbance and delayed reward discounting as intermediate factors linking adverse childhood experiences with smoking. Hypotheses were tested with three waves of data (M age-T1  = 20.34, M age-T2  = 21.92, M age-T3  = 23.02) from 505 African American men living in rural counties in South Georgia. Men provided self-report data on their adverse childhood experiences, sleep problems, and smoking behavior using audio-assisted computer self-interviews. Men also completed a computer-based delayed reward discounting task. Structural equation modeling analyses supported our hypotheses: Adverse childhood experiences predicted poor sleep adequacy, which forecast increases in delayed reward discounting; discounting, in turn, predicted increased smoking. Significant indirect pathways were detected linking adversity to discounting via sleep adequacy and linking sleep adequacy to smoking via discounting. Prevention and intervention researchers can draw on these findings to develop programs that focus on sleep adequacy to reduce smoking in African American men exposed to childhood adversity.

Examining the role of attachment in the relationship between childhood adversity, psychological distress and subjective well-being.

PubMed

Corcoran, Mark; McNulty, Muireann

2018-02-01

Childhood adversity is associated with a wide range of detrimental psychological consequences. This study examined the mediating role of relationship-specific attachment (avoidance and anxiety) in the associations between childhood adversity and both psychological distress and subjective well-being. University students (N=190) across the Republic of Ireland completed self-report measures including the Adverse Childhood Experiences scale, Experiences in Close Relationships - Relationship Structures scale, Depression Anxiety and Stress scales and measures of subjective well-being. One hundred and twenty-eight participants (67.4%) reported experiencing at least one adverse childhood experience. Childhood adversity was associated with symptoms of psychological distress and subjective well-being. All such associations were mediated by certain relationship-specific attachment dimensions. Of these, attachment anxiety in general relationships was the most prominent mediator for both psychological distress and subjective well-being. Attachment to one's father and to one's romantic partner did not mediate any association. These findings indicate that attachment, in particular relationships, is an important factor in the associations between childhood adversity and both psychological distress and subjective well-being as an adult. One's attachment anxiety in general relationships is particularly important in these associations. Therapeutic interventions addressing these attachment domains may offset the detrimental effects of childhood adversity. Future research is required using a longitudinal design. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

What Does Attending Early Childhood Program Mean for Child Health in India?

PubMed

Sarkar, Dipanwita; Sarkar, Jayanta

2017-11-01

The health impact of attending early childhood development programs in developing countries remains largely unknown. In this study, we focus on the health consequences of attending preschool programs in India. Using a unique longitudinal dataset, we allow for heterogeneity in the impact of preschool across the distribution of health outcomes while controlling for time-invariant unobservables. We detect unique temporal variation in the effect of preschool attendance - growth of preschool attendees is slower than non-attendees in various parts of the distributions of several anthropometric measures when evaluated in the early years between ages 1 and 5. This effect is likely to reverse in the longer term at age 8. The early years' adverse effect can be explained in part by over-attendance in the form of long daily hours, excessive attendance days, and early entry. The findings are insensitive to nutritional incentives like free meals provided in public schools. The growth-retarding effect remains robust for weight-for-age z-scores, implying that the impact of preschool attendance is not only heterogeneous, but differs across dimensions of health status. Our study highlights the need for strengthening the delivery of childhood programs in developing countries in order to prevent adverse health effects in the critical years. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Separate and Cumulative Effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences in Predicting Adult Health and Health Care Utilization

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chartier, Mariette J.; Walker, John R.; Naimark, Barbara

2010-01-01

Objectives: Objectives of this population-based study were: (1) to examine the relative contribution of childhood abuse and other adverse childhood experiences to poor adult health and increased health care utilization and (2) to examine the cumulative effects of adverse childhood experiences on adult health and health care utilization. Methods:…

Early Childhood Services in New Zealand.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oborn, Glennie

2002-01-01

Describes the types and characteristics of New Zealand early childhood education services. Specific areas addressed include: (1) Te Whaariki, the New Zealand early childhood curriculum; (2) great outdoors as a feature of early education; (3) education and care centers; (4) kindergartens and playcenters; and (5) Te Kohanga Reo, Maori language and…

Actionable Intelligence about Early Childhood Risks in Philadelphia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

LeBoeuf, Whitney A.; Barghaus, Katherine; Fantuzzo, John; Coe, Kristen; Brumley, Benjamin

2016-01-01

"Early childhood risks" are markers of early childhood experiences that extensive research has shown to be detrimental to later academic and behavioral outcomes. In Philadelphia, evidence indicates that seven early childhood risks tracked by public agencies have negative effects on early school outcomes. These risks include low…

Early Childhood Review: Papers from GAEC, 1996-1997.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cartwright, Penny, Ed.; Kelly, Clare, Ed.; McLean, Kathy, Ed.; Mellor, Nikki, Ed.; Pidgeon, Sue, Ed.; Stevens, Judith, Ed.; Stables, Kay, Ed.

1996-01-01

This periodical, from Goldsmiths Association for Early Childhood (GAEC), addresses a variety of issues related to early childhood education in Great Britain. Articles included in the Spring 1996 issue are: (1) "Traditional Story Telling in the Early Years" (Fiona Collins); (2) "International Focus--Early Childhood Education…

Oscillatory magnetic brain activity is related to dissociative symptoms and childhood adversities - A study in women with multiple trauma.

PubMed

Schalinski, I; Moran, J K; Elbert, T; Reindl, V; Wienbruch, C

2017-08-15

Individuals with trauma-related disorders are complex and heterogeneous; part of this complexity derives from additional psychopathology like dissociation as well as environmental adversities such as traumatic stress, experienced throughout the lifespan. Understanding the neurophysiological abnormalities in Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) requires a simultaneous consideration of these factors. Resting state magnetoencephalography (MEG) recordings were obtained from 41 women with PTSD and comorbid depressive symptoms, and 16 healthy women. Oscillatory brain activity was extracted for five frequency bands and 11 source locations, and analyzed in relation to shutdown dissociation and adversity-related measures. Dissociative symptoms were related to increased delta and lowered beta power. Adversity-related measures modulated theta and alpha oscillatory power (in particular childhood sexual abuse) and differed between patients and controls. Findings are based on women with comorbid depressive symptoms and therefore may not be applicable for men or groups with other clinical profiles. In respect to childhood adversities, we had no reliable source for the early infancy. Trauma-related abnormalities in neural organization vary with both exposure to adversities as well as their potential to evoke ongoing shutdown responses. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Time does not heal all wounds: older adults who experienced childhood adversities have higher odds of mood, anxiety, and personality disorders.

PubMed

Raposo, Sarah M; Mackenzie, Corey S; Henriksen, Christine A; Afifi, Tracie O

2014-11-01

We aimed to examine the prevalence of several types of childhood adversity across adult cohorts, whether age moderates the effect of childhood adversity on mental health, the relationship between childhood adversity and psychopathology among older adults, the dose-response relationship between number of types of childhood adversities and mental disorders in later life, and whether lifetime mental health treatment reduces the odds of psychopathology among older survivors of childhood adversity. In a population-based, cross-sectional study on a nationally representative U.S. sample, we studied 34,653 community-dwelling Americans 20 years and older, including 7,080 adults 65 years and older from Wave 2 of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Trained lay interviewers assessed past-year mood and anxiety disorders and lifetime personality disorders. Participants self-reported childhood adversity based on questions from the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study. Childhood adversity was prevalent across five age cohorts. In our adjusted models, age did not moderate the effect of childhood adversity on mental disorders. Older adults who experienced childhood adversity had higher odds of having mood (odds ratio: 1.73; 95% confidence interval: 1.32-2.28), anxiety (odds ratio: 1.48; 95% confidence interval: 1.20-1.83), and personality disorders (odds ratio: 2.11; 95% confidence interval: 1.75-2.54) after adjusting for covariates. An increasing number of types of childhood adversities was associated with higher odds of personality disorders and somewhat higher odds of anxiety disorders. Treatment-seeking was associated with a reduced likelihood of anxiety and, especially, mood disorders in older adult childhood adversity survivors. These results emphasize the importance of preventing childhood adversity and intervening once it occurs to avoid the negative mental health effects that can last into old age. Copyright © 2014 American Association for

During stress, heart rate variability moderates the impact of childhood adversity in women with breast cancer.

PubMed

Tell, Dina; Mathews, Herbert L; Burr, Robert L; Witek Janusek, Linda

2018-03-01

Childhood adversity has long-lasting neuro-biological effects that can manifest as exaggerated stress responsivity to environmental challenge. These manifestations include a dysregulated hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis as well as increased levels of inflammatory mediators in response to stress. In this investigation, vagal parasympathetic activity was assessed for its capacity to moderate the relationship between childhood adversity and stress responsivity (cortisol and inflammation) during an acute laboratory challenge (Trier Social Stress Test-TSST). Thirty women recently diagnosed with breast cancer underwent the TSST during which their heart rate was recorded and saliva samples collected for measurement of cortisol and the proinflammatory cytokine, IL-6. Vagal activity during the TSST was calculated as the high-frequency (HF) component of heart rate variability (HRV). Vagal activity during the TSST moderated the effect of childhood adversity on both the cortisol and the IL-6 response. Women who had lower vagal stress-reactivity during the TSST and reported greater childhood adversity showed a larger rise in cortisol and IL-6 when compared to women with lower childhood adversity. The findings demonstrate that women with exposure to childhood adversity and low vagal stress-reactivity (reduced parasympathetic activity) exhibit an elevated stress response characterized by greater cortisol and proinflammatory cytokine release. Inflammatory burden and HPA dysregulation subsequent to stress may impair cancer control.

Early Childhood Educator and Administrator Surveys on the Use of Assessments and Standards in Early Childhood Settings. REL 2014-019

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Irwin, Clare W.; O'Dwyer, Laura; Cook, Kyle DeMeo

2014-01-01

The Early Childhood Educator Survey and the Early Childhood Administrator Survey allow users to collect consistent data on the use of child assessments and learning standards in early childhood learning settings. Each survey includes modules on educator/administrator background information, assessment use, and learning standards implementation.…

The relationship between childhood adversity and food insecurity: 'It's like a bird nesting in your head'.

PubMed

Chilton, Mariana; Knowles, Molly; Rabinowich, Jenny; Arnold, Kimberly T

2015-10-01

Adverse childhood experiences, including abuse, neglect and household instability, affect lifelong health and economic potential. The present study investigates how adverse childhood experiences are associated with food insecurity by exploring caregivers' perceptions of the impact of their childhood adversity on educational attainment, employment and mental health. Semi-structured audio-recorded in-person interviews that included (i) quantitative measures of maternal and child health, adverse childhood experiences (range: 0-10) and food security using the US Household Food Security Survey Module; and (ii) qualitative audio-recorded investigations of experiences with abuse, neglect, violence and hunger over participants' lifetimes. Households in Philadelphia, PA, USA. Thirty-one mothers of children <4 years old who reported low or very low household food security. Twenty-one caregivers (68 %) reported four or more adverse childhood experiences, and this severity was significantly associated with reports of very low food security (Fisher's exact P=0·021). Mothers reporting emotional and physical abuse were more likely to report very low food security (Fisher's exact P=0·032). Qualitatively, participants described the impact of childhood adverse experiences with emotional and physical abuse/neglect, and household substance abuse, on their emotional health, school performance and ability to maintain employment. In turn, these experiences negatively affected their ability to protect their children from food insecurity. The associations between mothers' adverse experiences in childhood and reports of current household food security should inspire researchers, advocates and policy makers to comprehensively address family hardship through greater attention to the emotional health of caregivers. Programmes meant to address nutritional deprivation and financial hardship should include trauma-informed approaches that integrate behavioural interventions.

Association of Cumulative Childhood Adversity and Adolescent Violent Offending With Suicide in Early Adulthood.

PubMed

Björkenstam, Emma; Hjern, Anders; Björkenstam, Charlotte; Kosidou, Kyriaki

2018-02-01

Childhood adversity (CA) is associated with an increased risk of suicide in young adulthood that might be explained by maladaptive trajectories during adolescence. Although adolescent violent offending is linked with suicide, little is known about its role in the association between CA and suicide. To examine whether adolescent violent offending mediates the association between CA and suicide in early adulthood. This population-based, longitudinal cohort study with a follow-up time spanning 5 to 9 years included 476 103 individuals born in Sweden between 1984 and 1988. The study population was prospectively followed up from 20 years of age until December 31, 2013, with respect to suicide. Data analysis was performed from January 1, 1984, to December 31, 2013. Register-based CAs included parental death, parental substance abuse and psychiatric disorder, parental criminal offending, parental separation, public assistance recipiency, child welfare intervention, and residential instability. Adolescent violent offending was defined as being convicted of a violent crime between the ages of 15 and 19 years. Estimates of risk of suicide after 20 years of age (from 2004 if born in 1984 and from 2008 if born in 1988) until the end of 2013 were calculated as incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% CIs using Poisson regression analysis. Adjustments were made for demographics and psychiatric disorder. In addition, binary mediation analysis with logistic regression was used. A total of 476 103 individuals (231 699 [48.7%] female) were included in the study. Those with a conviction for violent offending had been exposed to all CAs to a greater extent than those with no violent offending. Cumulative CA was associated with risk of suicide in nonconvicted (adjusted IRR, 2.4; 95% CI, 1.5-3.9) and convicted youths, who had a higher risk of suicide (adjusted IRR, 8.5; 95% CI, 4.6-15.7). Adolescent violent offending partly mediated the association between CA and suicide. Individuals

Foundations for screening adverse childhood experiences: Exploring patterns of exposure through infancy and toddlerhood.

PubMed

McKelvey, Lorraine M; Selig, James P; Whiteside-Mansell, Leanne

2017-08-01

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have lifetime consequences for health and development. Identification of ACEs early in childhood provides the potential to intervene before health and development are impaired. This study examined the timing and duration of exposure to ACEs experienced by children from low-income families from ages one to three years to identify whether there were patterns of exposure when infants and toddlers were most vulnerable. We were able to confirm the early negative consequences on cognitive, health, and behavior outcomes previously reported in young children using a national, longitudinal data set of parents and children from low-income households (N=2250). Using Finite Mixture Models, five classes of exposure were identified for children, Consistently Low (63.8%), Decreasing (10.3%), High at Age 2 (11.4%), Increasing (10.4%), and Consistently High (4%). The Consistently Low and Consistently High classes had the most and least optimal development across all domains, respectively. When examining child development outcomes among children with variable exposures to adversities, we found that for cognitive, language, and physical development, the most proximal ACEs were more robust for predicting child outcomes. For socioemotional health, exposure at any time from one to three to ACEs had negative consequences. As a whole, findings from this study highlight the need to consider ACEs screening tools that are both time-sensitive and permit a lifetime report. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

PARENTAL CHILDHOOD ADVERSITY, DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS, AND PARENTING QUALITY: EFFECTS ON TODDLER SELF-REGULATION IN CHILD WELFARE SERVICES INVOLVED FAMILIES.

PubMed

Spieker, Susan J; Oxford, Monica L; Fleming, Charles B; Lohr, Mary Jane

2018-01-01

Parents who are involved with child welfare services (CWSI) often have a history of childhood adversity and depressive symptoms. Both affect parenting quality, which in turn influences child adaptive functioning. We tested a model of the relations between parental depression and child regulatory outcomes first proposed by K. Lyons-Ruth, R. Wolfe, A. Lyubchik, and R. Steingard (2002). We hypothesized that both parental depression and parenting quality mediate the effects of parental early adversity on offspring regulatory outcomes. Participants were 123 CWSI parents and their toddlers assessed three times over a period of 6 months. At Time 1, parents reported on their childhood adversity and current depressive symptoms. At Time 2, parents' sensitivity to their child's distress and nondistress cues was rated from a videotaped teaching task. At Time 3, observers rated children's emotional regulation, orientation/engagement, and secure base behavior. The results of a path model partly supported the hypotheses. Parent childhood adversity was associated with current depressive symptoms, which in turn related to parent sensitivity to child distress, but not nondistress. Sensitivity to distress also predicted secure base behavior. Depression directly predicted orientation/engagement, also predicted by sensitivity to nondistress. Sensitivity to distress predicted emotion regulation and orientation/engagement. Results are discussed in terms of intervention approaches for CWSI families. © 2017 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

Do Childhood Adversities Predict Suicidality? Findings from the General Population of the Metropolitan Area of São Paulo, Brazil.

PubMed

Coêlho, Bruno Mendonça; Andrade, Laura Helena; Borges, Guilherme; Santana, Geilson Lima; Viana, Maria Carmen; Wang, Yuan-Pang

2016-01-01

Childhood adversities have been associated with a number of medical and psychiatric outcomes. However, the reported effects that specific childhood adversities have on suicidality vary across studies. This was a cross-sectional, stratified, multistage area probability investigation of a general population in Brazil, designated the São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey. The World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview was applied in 5037 individuals ≥ 18 years of age, in order to assess 12 different adversities occurring during childhood and/or adolescence, as well as to look for associations between those adversities and subsequent suicidality in different age strata. Over half of the respondents reported at least one childhood adversity. Only physical abuse was consistently associated with suicide attempts in all subsequent life stages (OR = 2.1). Among adults 20-29 years of age, the likelihood of a suicide attempt was correlated with parental divorce, whereas suicidal ideation was associated with prior sexual abuse. Among adults over 30 years of age, physical illness and economic adversity emerged as relevant childhood adversities associated with suicide attempts, whereas sexual abuse, family violence, and economic adversity were associated with suicidal ideation. Childhood adversities, especially physical abuse, are likely associated with unfavorable consequences in subsequent years. For suicidality across a lifespan, the role of different childhood adversities must be examined independently.

Do Childhood Adversities Predict Suicidality? Findings from the General Population of the Metropolitan Area of São Paulo, Brazil

PubMed Central

Andrade, Laura Helena; Borges, Guilherme; Santana, Geilson Lima; Viana, Maria Carmen; Wang, Yuan-Pang

2016-01-01

Background Childhood adversities have been associated with a number of medical and psychiatric outcomes. However, the reported effects that specific childhood adversities have on suicidality vary across studies. Method This was a cross-sectional, stratified, multistage area probability investigation of a general population in Brazil, designated the São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey. The World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview was applied in 5037 individuals ≥ 18 years of age, in order to assess 12 different adversities occurring during childhood and/or adolescence, as well as to look for associations between those adversities and subsequent suicidality in different age strata. Results Over half of the respondents reported at least one childhood adversity. Only physical abuse was consistently associated with suicide attempts in all subsequent life stages (OR = 2.1). Among adults 20–29 years of age, the likelihood of a suicide attempt was correlated with parental divorce, whereas suicidal ideation was associated with prior sexual abuse. Among adults over 30 years of age, physical illness and economic adversity emerged as relevant childhood adversities associated with suicide attempts, whereas sexual abuse, family violence, and economic adversity were associated with suicidal ideation. Conclusion Childhood adversities, especially physical abuse, are likely associated with unfavorable consequences in subsequent years. For suicidality across a lifespan, the role of different childhood adversities must be examined independently. PMID:27192171

Assessing Thai Early Childhood Teachers' Knowledge of Inclusive Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Agbenyega, Joseph S.; Klibthong, Sunanta

2014-01-01

An ever-increasing number of children with and without disabilities are attending early childhood programmes and learning together. Early childhood inclusion considers all children with and without disabilities, and their families as full members of the early childhood community. Although many early childhood teachers accept the educational rights…

Adverse childhood experiences among women prisoners: relationships to suicide attempts and drug abuse.

PubMed

Friestad, Christine; Åse-Bente, Rustad; Kjelsberg, Ellen

2014-02-01

Women prisoners are known to suffer from an accumulation of factors known to increase the risk for several major health problems. This study examines the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) and the relationship between such experiences and suicide attempts and drug use among incarcerated women in Norway. A total of 141 women inmates (75% of all eligible) were interviewed using a structured interview guide covering information on demographics and a range of ACE related to abuse and neglect, and household dysfunction. The main outcome variables were attempted suicide and adult drug abuse. Emotional, physical and sexual abuse during childhood was experienced by 39%, 36% and 19%, respectively, and emotional and physical neglect by 31% and 33%, respectively. Looking at the full range of ACE, 17% reported having experienced none, while 34% reported having experienced more than five ACEs. After controlling for age, immigrant background and marital status, the number of ACEs significantly increased the risk of attempted suicide and current drug abuse. The associations observed between early life trauma and later health risk behaviour indicate the need for early prevention. The findings also emphasize the important role of prison health services in secondary prevention among women inmates.

Association Between Pandemic Influenza A(H1N1) Vaccination in Pregnancy and Early Childhood Morbidity in Offspring.

PubMed

Hviid, Anders; Svanström, Henrik; Mølgaard-Nielsen, Ditte; Lambach, Philipp

2017-03-01

Several studies investigating potential adverse effects of the pandemic A(H1N1) vaccine have supported that influenza A(H1N1) vaccination does not increase the risk for major pregnancy and birth adverse outcomes, but little is known about possible adverse effects in offspring of A(H1N1)-vaccinated mothers beyond the perinatal period and into early childhood. To evaluate whether pandemic influenza A(H1N1) vaccination in pregnancy increases the risk for early childhood morbidity in offspring. Register-based cohort study comprising all live-born singleton children in Denmark from pregnancies overlapping the A(H1N1) influenza vaccination campaign in Denmark, from November 2, 2009, to March 31, 2010. From a cohort of 61 359 pregnancies, offspring exposed and unexposed to the influenza A(H1N1) vaccine during pregnancy were matched 1:4 on propensity scores. Vaccination in pregnancy with a monovalent inactivated AS03-adjuvanted split virion influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 vaccine (Pandemrix; GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals). Rate ratios of hospitalization in early childhood until 5 years of age. Hospitalization was defined as (1) first inpatient hospital admission, (2) all inpatient hospital admissions, and (3) first hospital contact for selected diseases, which included individual infectious diseases and individual neurologic, autoimmune, and behavioral conditions. The mean (SD) age at end of follow-up was 4.6 (0.40) years for the 61 359 children included in the study. In the cohort, the mothers of 55 048 children were unvaccinated, 349 mothers were vaccinated in the first trimester, and 5962 mothers were vaccinated in the second or third trimesters. Children exposed in the first trimester were not more likely to be hospitalized in early childhood than unexposed children (hospitalization rates per 1000 person-years, 300.6 for exposed vs 257.5 for unexposed; rate ratio, 1.17; 95% CI, 0.94-1.45). Similarly, children exposed in the second or third trimester were not more likely to

Evaluating and Supporting Early Childhood Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Passe, Angèle Sancho

2015-01-01

There's a lot of conversation in the early childhood community on evaluating teachers to improve their performance. Raising the quality of early care and education is a priority for policymakers and practitioners on local, state, and federal levels. As a result, much attention is being focused on early childhood educators to ensure that they do a…

The Affordable Care Act, science, and childhood adversity: a call for pediatric nurses and physicians to lead.

PubMed

Oʼmalley, Donna M

2013-01-01

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act aims to increase access to many who were previously uninsured, to increase the quality of health care, and to decrease costs. Accountable Care Organizations are a manifestation of these new health care reforms. A proactive approach focused on primary prevention to address modifiable determinants of health holds the promise of a healthier population while being cost-effective. Exposure to toxic stress in childhood places many children on a trajectory for poor immediate and long-term health outcomes. A lifecourse approach to disease prevention offers opportunities at every age and stage to build resilience, which buffers and protects children from the effects of adversity and toxic stress. The American Academy of Pediatrics, recognizing that many adult diseases are rooted in experiences in early childhood, has proposed an ecobiodevelopmental framework that expands the role of pediatricians and embraces a preventive lifecourse approach to health and well-being. Exposure to adversity and toxic stress in childhood is a serious public health problem. A new kind of leadership is required to address these issues. Pediatric nurses and physicians are trusted healers and in a position to seek solutions skillfully and intentionally.

Childhood abuse and psychotic experiences - evidence for mediation by adulthood adverse life events.

PubMed

Bhavsar, V; Boydell, J; McGuire, P; Harris, V; Hotopf, M; Hatch, S L; MacCabe, J H; Morgan, C

2017-10-09

We have previously reported an association between childhood abuse and psychotic experiences (PEs) in survey data from South East London. Childhood abuse is related to subsequent adulthood adversity, which could form one pathway to PEs. We aimed to investigate evidence of mediation of the association between childhood abuse and PEs by adverse life events. Data were analysed from the South East London Community Health Study (SELCoH, n = 1698). Estimates of the total effects on PEs of any physical or sexual abuse while growing up were partitioned into direct (i.e. unmediated) and indirect (total and specific) effects, mediated via violent and non-violent life events. There was strong statistical evidence for direct (OR 1.58, 95% CI: 1.19-2.1) and indirect (OR 1.51, 95% CI: 1.32-1.72) effects of childhood abuse on PEs after adjustment for potential confounders, indicating partial mediation of this effect via violent and non-violent life events. An estimated 47% of the total effect of abuse on PEs was mediated via adulthood adverse life events, of which violent life events made up 33% and non-violent life events the remaining 14%. The association between childhood abuse and PEs is partly mediated through the experience of adverse life events in adulthood. There is some evidence that a larger proportion of this effect was mediated through violent life events than non-violent life events.

Attachment-Related Regulatory Processes Moderate the Impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Stress Reaction in Borderline Personality Disorder.

PubMed

Ehrenthal, Johannes C; Levy, Kenneth N; Scott, Lori N; Granger, Douglas A

2018-01-01

In this study, the authors explored whether attachment insecurity moderates the effects of adverse childhood experiences on stress reactivity in the context of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Participants were 113 women (39 with BPD, 15 with some BPD criteria present, 59 without any BPD symptoms) who participated in the Trier Social Stress Test. Saliva samples were collected before and after the stressor and assayed for salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) and cortisol. Adverse childhood experiences were measured using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, and attachment by the Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised questionnaire. Results revealed that attachment avoidance and a combination of more adverse childhood experiences and attachment insecurity resulted in higher sAA levels and differences in reactivity to the stressor. Interactions between attachment anxiety and adverse childhood experiences were related to blunted cortisol reactivity. The results suggest that the influence of adverse childhood experiences on stress regulation in BPD may be moderated by attachment-related regulatory processes.

Girls' childhood trajectories of disruptive behavior predict adjustment problems in early adolescence.

PubMed

van der Molen, Elsa; Blokland, Arjan A J; Hipwell, Alison E; Vermeiren, Robert R J M; Doreleijers, Theo A H; Loeber, Rolf

2015-07-01

It is widely recognized that early onset of disruptive behavior is linked to a variety of detrimental outcomes in males, later in life. In contrast, little is known about the association between girls' childhood trajectories of disruptive behavior and adjustment problems in early adolescence. This study used nine waves of data from the ongoing Pittsburgh Girls Study. A semiparametric group-based model was used to identify trajectories of disruptive behavior in 1,513 girls from age 6 to 12 years. Adjustment problems were characterized by depression, self-harm, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), substance use, interpersonal aggression, sexual behavior, affiliation with delinquent peers, and academic achievement at ages 13 and 14. Three trajectories of childhood disruptive behavior were identified: low, medium, and high. Girls in the high group were at increased risk for depression, self-harm, PTSD, illegal substance use, interpersonal aggression, early and risky sexual behavior, and lower academic achievement. The likelihood of multiple adjustment problems increased with trajectories reflecting higher levels of disruptive behavior. Girls following the high childhood trajectory of disruptive behavior require early intervention programs to prevent multiple, adverse outcomes in adolescence and further escalation in adulthood. © 2014 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Disordered Gambling: Assessing the Mediating Role of Emotion Dysregulation.

PubMed

Poole, Julia C; Kim, Hyoun S; Dobson, Keith S; Hodgins, David C

2017-12-01

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as sexual and physical abuse, have been established as risk factors for the development of disordered gambling. The underlying mechanism by which ACEs influence disordered gambling, however, remains unknown. The aims of the present research were to comprehensively investigate ten types of childhood adversity and their relationships to disordered gambling in adulthood, and to test whether emotion dysregulation mediated the relationship between ACEs and disordered gambling. A sample of community gamblers (N = 414) completed self-report measures of ACEs, emotion dysregulation, and gambling severity. Results revealed a significant association between all but one type (physical abuse) of ACEs and disordered gambling. Further, the results highlighted the cumulative impact of ACEs on gambling. Specifically, individuals who experienced three or more types of ACEs were more than three times as likely to report disordered gambling as compared to individuals with no history of childhood adversity. Importantly, as hypothesized, emotion dysregulation mediated the relationship between ACEs and disordered gambling. Findings from this research describe the association between ACEs and gambling and indicate a causal link between childhood adversity and disordered gambling. Results suggest that treatment initiatives may do well to address both ACEs and emotion dysregulation in the treatment of problem gambling.

The Influence of Childhood Adversity on Rural Black Men's Sexual Risk Behavior.

PubMed

Kogan, Steven M; Cho, Junhan; Oshri, Assaf

2016-12-01

Young Black men living in resource-poor rural environments are disproportionately affected by both adverse childhood experiences and HIV/STIs. The influence of childhood adversity on sexual risk behavior remains to be examined among this vulnerable population. In this study, we investigated the influence of overall adversity as well as three subcomponents, abusive parenting, parental neglect, and witnessing family violence, on men's engagement in sexual risk behavior. We hypothesized that adverse experiences would predict engagement in sexual risk behaviors including multiple sexual partnerships, inconsistent condom use, frequent sexual activity, and concurrent substance abuse and sexual activity. We tested formally the extent to which defensive relational schemas mediated these associations. Hypotheses were tested with data from 505 rural Black men (M age = 20.29, SD = 1.10) participating in the African American Men's Health Project. Participants were recruited using respondent-driven sampling. Self-report data were gathered from participants via audio computer-assisted self-interviews. Bi-factor analyses revealed that, in addition to a common adversity factor, neglect independently predicted sexual risk behavior. Men's defensive relational schemas partially mediated the influence of the common adversity factor as well as the neglect subcomponent on sexual risk behavior. The present research identified a potential risk factor for sexual risk behavior in an understudied and vulnerable population. Adverse childhood experiences in general, and neglect in particular, may place many young Black men at risk for engaging in sexual risk behavior due in part to the influence of these experiences on men's development of relational schemas characterized by defensiveness and mistrust.

Investigating Early Childhood Teachers' Views on Science Teaching Practices: The Integration of Science with Visual Art in Early Childhood Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Öztürk Yilmaztekin, Elif; Erden, Feyza Tantekin

2017-01-01

This study investigates early childhood teachers' views about science teaching practices in an early childhood settings. It was conducted in a preschool located in Ankara, Turkey. The data of the study were collected through multiple sources of information such as interviews with early childhood teachers and observations of their practices in the…

Lifespan adversity and later adulthood telomere length in the nationally representative US Health and Retirement Study

PubMed Central

Gemmill, Alison; Weir, David; Adler, Nancy E.; Prather, Aric A.

2016-01-01

Stress over the lifespan is thought to promote accelerated aging and early disease. Telomere length is a marker of cell aging that appears to be one mediator of this relationship. Telomere length is associated with early adversity and with chronic stressors in adulthood in many studies. Although cumulative lifespan adversity should have bigger impacts than single events, it is also possible that adversity in childhood has larger effects on later life health than adult stressors, as suggested by models of biological embedding in early life. No studies have examined the individual vs. cumulative effects of childhood and adulthood adversities on adult telomere length. Here, we examined the relationship between cumulative childhood and adulthood adversity, adding up a range of severe financial, traumatic, and social exposures, as well as comparing them to each other, in relation to salivary telomere length. We examined 4,598 men and women from the US Health and Retirement Study. Single adversities tended to have nonsignificant relations with telomere length. In adjusted models, lifetime cumulative adversity predicted 6% greater odds of shorter telomere length. This result was mainly due to childhood adversity. In adjusted models for cumulative childhood adversity, the occurrence of each additional childhood event predicted 11% increased odds of having short telomeres. This result appeared mainly because of social/traumatic exposures rather than financial exposures. This study suggests that the shadow of childhood adversity may reach far into later adulthood in part through cellular aging. PMID:27698131

Lifespan adversity and later adulthood telomere length in the nationally representative US Health and Retirement Study.

PubMed

Puterman, Eli; Gemmill, Alison; Karasek, Deborah; Weir, David; Adler, Nancy E; Prather, Aric A; Epel, Elissa S

2016-10-18

Stress over the lifespan is thought to promote accelerated aging and early disease. Telomere length is a marker of cell aging that appears to be one mediator of this relationship. Telomere length is associated with early adversity and with chronic stressors in adulthood in many studies. Although cumulative lifespan adversity should have bigger impacts than single events, it is also possible that adversity in childhood has larger effects on later life health than adult stressors, as suggested by models of biological embedding in early life. No studies have examined the individual vs. cumulative effects of childhood and adulthood adversities on adult telomere length. Here, we examined the relationship between cumulative childhood and adulthood adversity, adding up a range of severe financial, traumatic, and social exposures, as well as comparing them to each other, in relation to salivary telomere length. We examined 4,598 men and women from the US Health and Retirement Study. Single adversities tended to have nonsignificant relations with telomere length. In adjusted models, lifetime cumulative adversity predicted 6% greater odds of shorter telomere length. This result was mainly due to childhood adversity. In adjusted models for cumulative childhood adversity, the occurrence of each additional childhood event predicted 11% increased odds of having short telomeres. This result appeared mainly because of social/traumatic exposures rather than financial exposures. This study suggests that the shadow of childhood adversity may reach far into later adulthood in part through cellular aging.

Ventral striatum and amygdala activity as convergence sites for early adversity and conduct disorder

PubMed Central

Boecker-Schlier, Regina; Buchmann, Arlette F.; Blomeyer, Dorothea; Jennen-Steinmetz, Christine; Baumeister, Sarah; Plichta, Michael M.; Cattrell, Anna; Schumann, Gunter; Esser, Günter; Schmidt, Martin; Buitelaar, Jan; Meyer-Lindenberg, Andreas; Banaschewski, Tobias; Brandeis, Daniel; Laucht, Manfred

2017-01-01

Abstract Childhood family adversity (CFA) increases the risk for conduct disorder (CD) and has been associated with alterations in regions of affective processing like ventral striatum (VS) and amygdala. However, no study so far has demonstrated neural converging effects of CFA and CD in the same sample. At age 25 years, functional MRI data during two affective tasks, i.e. a reward (N = 171) and a face-matching paradigm (N = 181) and anatomical scans (N = 181) were acquired in right-handed currently healthy participants of an epidemiological study followed since birth. CFA during childhood was determined using a standardized parent interview. Disruptive behaviors and CD diagnoses during childhood and adolescence were obtained by diagnostic interview (2–19 years), temperamental reward dependence was assessed by questionnaire (15 and 19 years). CFA predicted increased CD and amygdala volume. Both exposure to CFA and CD were associated with a decreased VS response during reward anticipation and blunted amygdala activity during face-matching. CD mediated the effect of CFA on brain activity. Temperamental reward dependence was negatively correlated with CFA and CD and positively with VS activity. These findings underline the detrimental effects of CFA on the offspring's affective processing and support the importance of early postnatal intervention programs aiming to reduce childhood adversity factors. PMID:27694318

Childhood adversity, adult socioeconomic status and risk of work disability: a prospective cohort study.

PubMed

Halonen, Jaana I; Kivimäki, Mika; Vahtera, Jussi; Pentti, Jaana; Virtanen, Marianna; Ervasti, Jenni; Oksanen, Tuula; Lallukka, Tea

2017-09-01

To examine the combined effects of childhood adversities and low adult socioeconomic status (SES) on the risk of future work disability. Included were 34 384 employed Finnish Public Sector study participants who responded to questions about childhood adversities (none vs any adversity, eg, parental divorce or financial difficulties) in 2008, and whose adult SES in 2008 was available. We categorised exposure into four groups: neither (reference), childhood adversity only, low SES only or both. Participants were followed from 2009 until the first period of register-based work disability (sickness absence >9 days or disability pension) due to any cause, musculoskeletal or mental disorders; retirement; death or end of follow-up (December 2011). We ran Cox proportional hazard models adjusted for behavioural, health-related and work-related covariates, and calculated synergy indices for the combined effects. When compared with those with neither exposure, HR for work disability from any cause was increased among participants with childhood adversity, with low SES, and those with both exposures. The highest hazard was observed in those with both exposures: HR 2.53, 95% CI 2.29 to 2.79 for musculoskeletal disability, 1.55, 95% CI 1.36 to 1.78 for disability due to mental disorders and 1.29, 95% CI 1.20 to 1.39 for disability due to other reasons. The synergy indices did not indicate synergistic effects. These findings indicate that childhood psychosocial adversity and low adult SES are additive risk factors for work disability. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Sexual Dysfunction in Males: Significance of Adverse Childhood Experiences.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kinzl, Johann F.; And Others

1996-01-01

A survey of 301 male college students found that occasional sexual dysfunction was frequent in young male adults, and long-lasting adverse familial relationships to attachment figures were more influential in later sexual dysfunction than were childhood sexual abuse experiences. (Author/DB)

Adverse childhood experiences and later life adult obesity and smoking in the United States.

PubMed

Rehkopf, David H; Headen, Irene; Hubbard, Alan; Deardorff, Julianna; Kesavan, Yamini; Cohen, Alison K; Patil, Divya; Ritchie, Lorrene D; Abrams, Barbara

2016-07-01

Prior work demonstrates associations between physical abuse, household alcohol abuse, and household mental illness early in life with obesity and smoking. Studies, however, have not generally been in nationally representative samples and have not conducted analyses to account for bias in the exposure. We used data from the 1979 U.S. National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to test associations between measures of adverse childhood experiences with obesity and smoking and used an instrumental variables approach to address potential measurement error of the exposure. Models demonstrated associations between childhood physical abuse and obesity at age 40 years (odds ratio [OR] 1.23; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.00-1.52) and ever smoking (OR 1.83; 95% CI, 1.56-2.16), as well as associations between household alcohol abuse (OR 1.53; 95% CI, 1.31-1.79) and household mental illness (OR 1.29; 95% CI, 1.04-1.60) with ever smoking. We find no evidence of association modification by gender, socioeconomic position, or race and/or ethnicity. Instrumental variables analysis using a sibling's report of adverse childhood experiences demonstrated a relationship between household alcohol abuse and smoking, with a population attributable fraction of 17% (95% CI, 2.0%-37%) for ever smoking and 6.7% (95% CI, 1.6%-12%) for currently smoking. Findings suggest long-term impacts of childhood exposure to physical abuse, household alcohol abuse, and parental mental illness on obesity and smoking and that the association between household alcohol abuse and smoking is not solely due to measurement error. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Childhood Adversities and Substance Misuse Among the Incarcerated: Implications for Treatment and Practice in Correctional Settings.

PubMed

Marotta, Phillip L

2017-05-12

Incarcerated populations have high rates of childhood adversities and substance use problems. Moreover, childhood adversities are well-documented predictors of substance misuse. To investigate the impact of childhood sexual and physical abuse, caregiver abuse of drugs or alcohol, and time spent in foster care on several substance misuse outcomes. Data comes from a sample of 16,043 incarcerated men and women in the United States Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Facilities. Bivariate analyses revealed differences by sex in childhood adversities and socioeconomic characteristics. Logistic regression analyses assessed the data for a link between childhood adversities and substance misuse after adjusting for other variables. Analyses were stratified by sex to show differences in predictors of substance misuse between men and women. Childhood adversities increased the risk of many substance misuse outcomes. The prevalence of physical abuse, sexual abuse, foster care, and caretaker abuse of drugs or alcohol were greatest for inmates who reported injecting and sharing drugs. Growing up with a caregiver that used drugs or alcohol was a consistent predictor of increased risk of substance misuse for men and women. However, childhood sexual abuse increased risk for only women. Inmates who experience physical abuse, sexual abuse, foster care involvement and caretakers who use drugs and alcohol are at an increased risk of substance misuse, injecting drug use and syringe sharing. Implications suggest correctional HIV prevention and substance misuse programs must address unresolved trauma and important gender differences.

Association of adverse childhood experiences and health risk behaviors among young adults visiting a regional primary healthcare center, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

PubMed Central

Peek-Asa, Corrine; Jovanović, Nina; Selimović, Edin

2018-01-01

Background Many studies have linked adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to long-term health outcomes, as well as health risk behaviors. In the post-war period in Bosnia and Herzegovina, many young people grew up in an environment of deteriorated living standards due to high unemployment and economic insecurity. The objectives of the study were to: 1) describe the health risk behaviors of young adults accessing primary healthcare; and 2) examine associations of these risk factors with adverse childhood experiences in this context. Methods This was a cross-sectional survey, conducted from April to October 2014. Participants were recruited from the Primary Healthcare Center Zenica. Patients between the ages of 18 and 24 were eligible for inclusion. The informed consent and self-administered questionnaire were offered to patients during clinic intake. The questionnaire contained questions on sexual and reproductive health, use of alcohol and drugs, dating violence, and adverse childhood experiences. Results During the study period 520 questionnaires were distributed, and 400 complete surveys were returned, for a response rate of 76.9%. Among the 400 respondents, 166 were males (41.5%) and 234 were females (58.5%). Our study showed that 48.7% of respondents had experienced some form of childhood adversity. Emotional neglect was the most common type of adverse childhood experience (25.6%) and was significantly more prevalent among females. Our study indicated that more than 15% of respondents had witnessed domestic violence. Overall, ACEs were associated with increased odds of early sex initiation, alcohol use, drug use, and dating violence, although some of these associations did not reach statistical significance. Emotional neglect was the exception, and reporting emotional neglect was associated with a significantly elevated odds ratio for all four of the health risk behaviors. Emotional abuse was associated with an increased odds of drug abuse (OR = 2.78; 95% CI = 1

Psychological Manifestations of Early Childhood Adversity in the Context of Chronic Hematologic Malignancy.

PubMed

McFarland, Daniel C; Shen, Megan Johnson; Polizzi, Heather; Mascarenhas, John; Kremyanskaya, Marina; Holland, Jimmie; Hoffman, Ronald

Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs), a group of chronic hematologic malignancies, carry significant physical and psychological symptom burdens that significantly affect patients' quality of life. We sought to identify the relationship between early childhood adversity (ECA) and psychological distress in patients with MPNs, as ECA may compound symptom burden. Patients with MPNs were assessed for ECA (i.e., the Risky Families Questionnaire-subscales include abuse/neglect/chaotic home environment), distress (i.e., Distress Thermometer and Problem List), anxiety (i.e., Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-Anxiety [HADS-A]), depression (i.e., Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-Depression [HADS-D]), meeting standardized cutoff thresholds for distress (i.e., Distress Thermometer and Problem List≥ 4 or ≥ 7)/anxiety (HADS-A ≥8)/depression (HADS-D ≥ 8), and demographic factors. A total of 117 participants completed the study (78% response rate). ECA was associated with depression (p < 0.000), anxiety (p < 0.000), and distress (p < 0.000) and problem list variables emotional (p < 0.000), physical (p = 0.004), family (p = 0.01), and spiritual (p = 0.01) by bivariate analysis and only with distress (HADS) (p = 0.038) on multivariate analysis. ECA was associated with meeting cutoff threshold criteria for distress (p = 0.007), anxiety (p = 0.001), and depression (p = 0.02). ECA subscale variables abuse and chaotic home environment were associated with psychological outcomes. ECA was higher based on disease subtypes with greater symptom burden (other > polycythemia vera > myelofibrosis > essential thrombocythemia) (p = 0.047) and taking an antidepressant (p = 0.011). ECA is associated with psychological distress and meets screening criteria for anxiety and depression in patients with MPNs. ECA may help to explain individual patient trajectories, and further understanding may enhance patient-centered care among patients with MPNs. Copyright © 2017 The Academy of

The relationship between childhood adversity, attachment, and internalizing behaviors in a diversion program for child-to-mother violence.

PubMed

Nowakowski-Sims, Eva; Rowe, Amanda

2017-10-01

Very little research has been conducted on the role of childhood adversity in child-to-parent violence. Childhood adversity places youth at risk for internalizing behaviors (i.e. anxiety and depression) and externalizing behaviors (i.e. aggression). The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between childhood adversity, child-mother attachment, and internalizing behaviors among a sample of 80 youth who have been arrested for domestic battery against a mother. This study reported high prevalence rates of childhood adversity (mean score of 10 out of 17 events). Multiple regression analysis indicated that insecure attachment predicted depression among females (F(6, 73)=4.87, p<0.001), and previous experience with child maltreatment and/or witness to parental violence predicted anxiety among females (F(6, 73)=3.08, p<0.01). This study is the first study to explore childhood adversity among a sample of perpetrators of child-to-mother violence and notably adds to our understanding of the multiple pathways connecting childhood adversity, child-mother attachment, and depression and anxiety among a difficult to treat youth population. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Breaking Bread: Spirituality, Food and Early Childhood Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bone, Jane

2005-01-01

The spiritual aspect of early childhood education is supported by the early childhood curriculum in Aotearoa New Zealand, "Te Whariki". Research in three different early childhood settings presents new perspectives on the everyday experiences of children in terms of spirituality. Each setting formed a case study that included the voices…

Early Childhood Training Workbook [and Videos].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Magna Systems, Inc., Barrington, IL.

This early childhood training workbook and three accompanying video series provide instruction for early childhood caregivers and teachers in the areas of guidance and discipline, math, and diversity. The video series "Guidance and Discipline" demonstrates the ways in which teachers help children become self disciplined. The three videos…

Publication Opportunities for Early Childhood Academics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sumsion, Jennifer

Recognizing the increasing pressure for publication for early childhood academics and the lack of current information about journals' publication practices, this study surveyed editors of Australian and international journals. The journals were selected through a survey of 43 academic staff of an institute of early childhood education and through…

Building Community Systems for Young Children: Early Childhood Education. Building State Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Series, Number 11

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bassok, Daphna; Stipek, Deborah; Inkelas, Moira; Kuo, Alice

2005-01-01

This report examines the importance and funding sources of early child care and education (ECE), and the ways in which the State Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems (SECCS) Initiative improves early childhood outcomes. Section I presents what is known about the importance of ECE, quality and access. Section II describes the current funding…

In-Service and Pre-Service Early Childhood Teachers' Views and Intentions about ICT Use in Early Childhood Settings: A Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gialamas, Vasilis; Nikolopoulou, Kleopatra

2010-01-01

This paper regards a comparative study which investigates in-service and pre-service Greek early childhood teachers' views and intentions about integrating and using computers in early childhood settings. Views and intentions were investigated via a questionnaire administered to 240 in-service and 428 pre-service early childhood teachers.…

Childhood adversity in association with personality disorder dimensions: new findings in an old debate.

PubMed

Hengartner, M P; Ajdacic-Gross, V; Rodgers, S; Müller, M; Rössler, W

2013-10-01

Various studies have reported a positive relationship between child maltreatment and personality disorders (PDs). However, few studies included all DSM-IV PDs and even fewer adjusted for other forms of childhood adversity, e.g. bullying or family problems. We analyzed questionnaires completed by 512 participants of the ZInEP epidemiology survey, a comprehensive psychiatric survey of the general population in Zurich, Switzerland. Associations between childhood adversity and PDs were analyzed bivariately via simple regression analyses and multivariately via multiple path analysis. The bivariate analyses revealed that all PD dimensions were significantly related to various forms of family and school problems as well as child abuse. In contrast, according to the multivariate analysis only school problems and emotional abuse were associated with various PDs. Poverty was uniquely associated with schizotypal PD, conflicts with parents with obsessive-compulsive PD, physical abuse with antisocial PD, and physical neglect with narcissistic PD. Sexual abuse was statistically significantly associated with schizotypal and borderline PD, but corresponding effect sizes were small. Childhood adversity has a serious impact on PDs. Bullying and violence in schools and emotional abuse appear to be more salient markers of general personality pathology than other forms of childhood adversity. Associations with sexual abuse were negligible when adjusted for other forms of adversity. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Adverse childhood experiences predict earlier age of drinking onset: results from a representative US sample of current or former drinkers.

PubMed

Rothman, Emily F; Edwards, Erika M; Heeren, Timothy; Hingson, Ralph W

2008-08-01

Our goal was to determine whether adverse childhood experiences predicted the age at which drinking was initiated and drinking motives in a representative sample of current or former drinkers in the United States. In 2006, a probability sample of 3592 US current or former drinkers aged 18 to 39 were surveyed. Multinomial logistic regression examined whether each of 10 adverse childhood experiences was associated with earlier ages of drinking onset, controlling for demographics, parental alcohol use, parental attitudes toward drinking, and peers' drinking in adolescence. We also examined whether there was a graded relationship between the number of adverse childhood experiences and age of drinking onset and whether adverse childhood experiences were related to self-reported motives for drinking during the first year that respondents drank. Sixty-six percent of respondents reported >or=1 adverse childhood experiences, and 19% reported experiencing >or=4. The most commonly reported adverse childhood experiences were parental separation/divorce (41.3%), living with a household member who was a problem drinker (28.7%), mental illness of a household member (24.8%), and sexual abuse (19.1%). Of the 10 specific adverse childhood experiences assessed, 5 were significantly associated with initiating drinking at or=21 years of age) after adjustment for confounders, including physical abuse, sexual abuse, having a mentally ill household member, substance abuse in the home, and parental discord or divorce. Compared with those without adverse childhood experiences, respondents with adverse childhood experiences were substantially more likely to report that they drank to cope during the first year that they used alcohol. Results suggest that children with particular adverse childhood experiences may initiate drinking earlier than their peers and that they may be more likely to drink to cope with problems (rather than for pleasure or to be

Workforce Issues in Early Childhood Education and Care.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moss, Peter

This paper addresses, in two parts, some issues in the staffing of early childhood services. Taking an international perspective, the first part of the paper discusses: (1) the structure of the early childhood workforce; (2) the social construction of the early childhood worker; (3) gender; (4) staff to child ratios; (5) processes of transition in…

Childhood Psychosocial Adversity and Adult Neighborhood Disadvantage as Predictors of Cardiovascular Disease: A Cohort Study.

PubMed

Halonen, Jaana I; Stenholm, Sari; Pentti, Jaana; Kawachi, Ichiro; Subramanian, S V; Kivimäki, Mika; Vahtera, Jussi

2015-08-04

Childhood adverse psychosocial factors (eg, parental divorce, long-term financial difficulties) and adult neighborhood disadvantage have both been linked to increased cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, their combined effects on disease risk are not known. Participants were 37 699 adults from the Finnish Public Sector study whose data were linked to a national neighborhood disadvantage grid with the use of residential addresses between the years 2000 and 2008 and who responded to a survey on childhood psychosocial adversities and adult CVD risk behaviors in 2008 to 2009. Survey data were also linked to national registers on hospitalization, mortality, and prescriptions to assess CVD risk factors in 2008 to 2009 and to ascertain incident CVD (coronary heart disease or cerebrovascular disease) between the survey and the end of December 2011 (mean follow-up, 2.94 years; SD=0.44 years). Combined exposure to high childhood adversity and high adult disadvantage was associated with CVD risk factors (hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes mellitus, obesity, smoking, heavy alcohol use, and physical inactivity) and with a 2.25-fold (95% confidence interval, 1.39-3.63) hazard of incident CVD compared with a low childhood adversity and low adult disadvantage. This hazard ratio was attenuated by 16.6% but remained statistically significant after adjustment for the CVD risk factors (1.96; 95% confidence interval, 1.22-3.16). Exposure to high childhood adversity or high adult neighborhood disadvantage alone was not significantly associated with CVD in fully adjusted models. These findings suggest that individuals with both childhood psychosocial adversity and adult neighborhood disadvantage are at an increased risk of CVD. In contrast, those with only 1 of these exposures have little or no excess risk after controlling for conventional risk factors. © 2015 American Heart Association, Inc.

Predicting Individual Differences in Low-Income Children's Executive Control from Early to Middle Childhood

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raver, C. Cybele; McCoy, Dana Charles; Lowenstein, Amy E.; Pess, Rachel

2013-01-01

The present longitudinal study tested the roles of early childhood executive control (EC) as well as exposure to poverty-related adversity at family and school levels as key predictors of low-income children's EC in elementary school ("n" = 391). Findings suggest that children's EC difficulties in preschool and lower family income from…

Childhood adversity and adult depressive disorder: a case-controlled study in Malaysia.

PubMed

Loh, S F; Maniam, T; Tan, S M K; Badi'ah, Y

2010-06-01

To describe the association between childhood adversity and depression in adult depressed patients in a Malaysian population. Fifty-two patients, who met the criteria for major depressive disorder or dysthymia according to the Structured Clinical Interview based on the revised 3rd edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, were used as cases and compared with 52 controls matched for age and sex. Cases and controls were assessed using a sexual and physical abuse questionnaire and a Parental Bonding Instrument. There was a positive relationship between childhood abuse in general and childhood physical abuse with adult depressive disorder in particular. Nearly a quarter (23%) of depressed patients reported being abused in childhood compared with none in the control group. There was no significant association between childhood loss and depression in adulthood. Low level of parental care during childhood was significantly correlated with adult depressive disorder. Clinicians should assiduously seek a history of childhood adversities in adult patients with depression. This information can influence clinical management by way of implementing secondary preventive measures. In all depressed patients, mental health professionals also need to look out for their poor attachment with parents during childhood. This may enable interventions directed at parenting skills and improved attachment relationships with their own children. These types of interventions together with pharmacotherapy may provide the optimal approach to the management of depression in adults and help prevent the cycle of depression perpetuating itself in the next generation.

Childhood adversity increases the risk of onward transmission from perinatal HIV-infected adolescents and youth in South Africa.

PubMed

Kidman, Rachel; Nachman, Sharon; Dietrich, Janan; Liberty, Afaaf; Violari, Avy

2018-05-01

Repeated exposure to childhood adversity (abuse, neglect and other traumas experienced before age 18) can have lifelong impacts on health. For HIV-infected adolescents and youth, such impacts may include onward transmission of HIV. To evaluate this possibility, the current study measured the burden of childhood adversity and its influence on risky health behaviors among perinatally-infected adolescents and youth. We surveyed 250 perinatally-infected adolescents and youth (13-24 years) receiving care in Soweto, South Africa. Both male and female participants reported on childhood adversity (using the ACE-IQ), sexual behavior, and psychosocial state. Viral load was also abstracted from their charts. We used logistic regressions to test the association between cumulative adversity and behavioral outcomes. Half the sample reported eight or more adversities. Overall, 72% experienced emotional abuse, 59% experienced physical abuse, 34% experienced sexual abuse, 82% witnessed domestic violence, and 91% saw someone being attacked in their community. A clear gradient emerged between cumulative adversities and behavioral risk. Having experienced one additional childhood adversity raised the odds of risky sexual behavior by almost 30% (OR 1.27, 95% CI 1.09-1.48). Viral suppression was poor overall (31% had viral loads >400 copies/ml), but was not related to adversity. Adversity showed a robust relationship to depression and substance abuse. Childhood adversity is common, influences the current health of HIV-positive adolescents and youth, and puts their sexual partners at risk for HIV infection. Greater primary prevention of childhood adversity and increased access to support services (e.g., mental health) could reduce risk taking among HIV-positive adolescents and youth. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adverse childhood experiences and child-to-adult height trajectories in the 1958 British birth cohort.

PubMed

Denholm, Rachel; Power, Chris; Li, Leah

2013-10-01

Adverse childhood experiences (maltreatment and household dysfunction) are associated with adult cardiovascular disease (CVD). One possible pathway is through physical development, which has been linked to CVD risk. Our aim was to examine whether adverse childhood experiences are associated with child-to-adult height trajectories. The 1958 British birth cohort (n=17,638) includes all born in one week in March 1958, followed up to mid adulthood. Height was measured at 7, 11 and 16 years (y) and adulthood (converted to standard deviation scores (SDS); ≥1 height measurement n=16,444, adult leg length n=9180). Multivariate response models were used to examine the associations between childhood experiences (ascertained at 7 y and self-reported at 45 y) and child-to-adult height. Childhood neglect, prospectively assessed at 7 y, was associated with shorter stature throughout childhood: for each increment across a score ranging 0-7, average height reduced by 0.06 SDS (males) and 0.05 SDS (females) at 7 y (≈0.3 cm), with smaller deficits (0.03 SDS, ≈0.2 cm) in adulthood, after adjustment for parental height, birthweight and socio-economic factors. In males, the adult deficit was mainly due to shorter leg length. Household dysfunction was associated with shorter stature at 7-11 y, with adjusted deficits from 0.04 to 0.07 SDS per increment across a score ranging 0-7, but not at later ages. Adjusted models showed no associations for retrospectively reported abuse or neglect to 16 y. Those with a higher neglect score by 7 y grew more slowly, with deficits through to adulthood. No associations were found for abuse over the longer period to 16 y. Deficits associated with early life neglect and household dysfunction might have implications for adult CVD risks.

Computer Training for Early Childhood Educators.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Specht, Jacqueline; Wood, Eileen; Willoughby, Teena

Recent research in early childhood education (ECE) centers suggests that some teacher characteristics are not at a level that would support computer learning opportunities for children. This study identified areas of support required by teachers to provide a smooth introduction of the computer into the early childhood education classroom.…

Pedagogy for Early Childhood Gifted Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaplan, Sandra; Hertzog, Nancy B.

2016-01-01

Federal attention is focused currently on investing and improving the quality of early childhood education, so that children's potential and talent development can be used as a natural resource for the future of our country. This article engages readers in transitioning their thinking about early childhood gifted education from a traditional…

Early Childhood.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peters, Donald L.; Willis, Sherry L.

This book summarizes theory and discusses major issues pertaining to child development in the early childhood years. Chapter I provides an introduction to the conceptual framework and major theories of child development. Chapter II deals with motor, sensory, and perceptual development. Chapter III focuses on the cognitive-developmental theory of…

Frequency of Six Early Childhood Education Approaches: A 10-Year Content Analysis of Early Childhood Education Journal

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walsh, Bridget A.; Petty, Karen

2007-01-01

The frequency of early childhood education approaches spanning 10 years of publications was investigated. A content analysis of publications (N = 492) from "Early Childhood Education Journal" was conducted. From a previous content analysis six approaches or search words were identified: Bank Street, Head Start, High/Scope, Montessori, Reggio…

Childhood Adversities Associated with Poor Adult Mental Health Outcomes in Older Homeless Adults: Results From the HOPE HOME Study.

PubMed

Lee, Chuan Mei; Mangurian, Christina; Tieu, Lina; Ponath, Claudia; Guzman, David; Kushel, Margot

2017-02-01

To examine whether childhood adversity is associated with depressive symptoms, suicide attempts, or psychiatric hospitalization. History of seven childhood adversities (physical neglect, verbal abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, parental death, parental incarceration, and child welfare system placement) was gathered through in-person interviews. Multivariate models examined associations between history of childhood adversities and moderate to severe depressive symptoms, lifetime history of suicide attempt, or lifetime history of psychiatric hospitalization. The study enrolled 350 homeless adults, aged 50 and older, in Oakland, California, using population-based sampling methods. Moderate to severe depressive symptoms were measured on a Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (≥22), self-reported lifetime history of suicide attempt, and self-reported lifetime history of psychiatric hospitalization. Participants with exposure to one childhood adversity had elevated odds of reporting moderate to severe depressive symptoms (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 2.0; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.1-3.7) and lifetime history of suicide attempt (AOR: 4.6; 95% CI: 1.0-21.6) when compared with those who had none; the odds of these two outcomes increased with exposure to additional childhood adversities. Participants with four or more childhood adversities had higher odds of having a lifetime history of psychiatric hospitalization (AOR: 7.1; 95% CI: 2.8-18.0); no increase with fewer adversities was found. Childhood adversities are associated with poor mental health outcomes among older homeless adults. Clinicians should collect information about childhood adversities among this high-risk population to inform risk assessment and treatment recommendations. Copyright © 2017 American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Early Childhood Inclusion in the United Kingdom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blackburn, Carolyn

2016-01-01