Adverse Childhood Experiences
What Are ACEs?
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are stressful events occurring in childhood including domestic violence, parental abandonment through separation, abuse (physical, sexual, neglect or emotional), a parent with a mental health condition, being exposed to substance misuse, or being emotionally neglected.
Each ACE has a score of one and each type of trauma counts as one, no matter how many times it occurs. Think of it as a cholesterol score for childhood trauma.
The more ACEs a child has, the more at risk they are for future mental and physical health-related issues.
Research tells us that if a child has experienced 4 or more ACEs they are more likely to engage in risk-taking behaviours including substance misuse.
Here Is the Full List of ACEs and Their Impacts
Current research tells us that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) will affect the developing minds and bodies of children.
ACEs Can Include:
- Physical neglect
- Emotional neglect – emotionally unavailable
- Separation from parents due to mental health, death, illness, war etc
- Psychological abuse
- Sexual abuse
- Living with domestic abuse
- Mental illness within the household
- Parents separation or divorce
- Substance misuse
- Parent in prison or involvement with the police
- Different caregivers and inconsistent care
Children & Young People’s Mental Health: The Facts
The Impact of 4 or More Adverse Childhood Experiences
- 2x more likely to binge drink
- 7x more likely to be involved in crime and violence
- 11x more likely to go to prison
- 11x more likely to use drugs
- 18x the number of suicide attempts
- 4x as likely to have begun intercourse by age 15
- 4.5x more likely to develop depression
- 3x more likely to smoke as adults
- 3x more likely to develop lung disease
- 2x the level of liver disease
- 3x increased risk of heart disease, respiratory disease, and type 2 diabetes
ACEs and Their Impact
Childhood adversity can create harmful levels of stress that impact healthy brain development. This can result in long-term effects on learning, behaviour, and health.
- People with 6+ ACEs can die 20 years earlier than those who have none.
- ACEs can exert a significant influence throughout people’s life.
- 1/8 of the population have more than 4 ACEs.
- It is very important to think about ACEs when considering how to improve the lives of young people.
7 in 10 children (65%) reported 1 or more adverse childhood experience by the age of 8.
1 in 10 children (11%) reported 3 or more adverse childhood experiences by the age of 8.