ACEs Affect Your Adulthood Socioeconomic Status, Health Behavior

Background: An estimated 60% of U.S. adults report having had adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), emotionally traumatic events such as neglect, abuse, or parental death. Objective: To longitudinally examine the association between ACEs and socioeconomic disadvantages among young U.S. adults. Design: Retrospective, observational case-controlled study. Methods: Administrative, survey, and criminal justice data from multiple government databases were accessed and cross-correlated. A total of 930,000 children born between 1999 and 2003 in 4 states (Maryland, Michigan, North Caroline, and North Dakota) were evaluated for presence of ACEs, which were then correlated with outcomes during 2017 to 2021 (age, 18 to 22 years). ACEs were parental death, separation, incarceration, intimate partner violence, felony charges related to substance abuse disorder, drug possession or trafficking, and child nonsexual abuse or sexual abuse. Study outcomes were the effect of each kind of childhood ACE an more...