Relationship of Childhood Abuse and Household Dysfunction to Many of the Leading Causes of Death in Adults: The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study

A questionnaire about adverse childhood experiences was answered by 9,508 adults. 7 categories of adverse childhood experiences were studied. The number of categories of these adverse childhood experiences was then compared to measures of adult risk behaviour, health status & disease. Persons who had experienced 4 or more categories of childhood exposure, compared to those who had experienced none, had 4- to 12-fold increased health risks for alcoholism, drug abuse, depression & suicide attempt.