Child abuse is related to future health

The results show that abused children are at high risk of physical weakness when they reach adulthood.

Researchers at King's University in London tracked 1,000 people in New Zealand from birth to 32 years old. A third of them are mistreated with high levels of inflammation - an early sign of diseases such as heart disease and diabetes.

Experts say child abuse prevention can help reduce the burden of disease in adults. Participants in the study published in the Science Institute's Records were tracked as children and when they were 26 they were asked to recall the abuse they had suffered as children.

Researchers consider many different factors that can explain poor health, including stress, depression, good health, as well as smoking, diet and physical activity.

They took blood samples to measure levels of cytoplasmic protein, fibrinogen and white blood cells - substances known to be associated with inflammation in the body.

Adults ' surviving ' after abuse at a young age - those who appear to be healthy - are likely to exhibit twice as many clinical-related levels of inflammatory disease as people who have never been abused.

Inflammation is known to predict the development of diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. In particular, the cytoplasmic protein is recommended by the American Heart Association as a screening tool to assess a person's risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

Community health

Leading the research, Dr. Andrea Danese, a psychiatrist at the University of London, said public health interventions to prevent abuse in children can help reduce illness. disability in adults.

'We know that adults, who are abused as children, are worse than others but we don't know how to explain it, so what we say here is a in possible explanations. '

(Photo: Nayef Hashlamoun)

Dr. Danese explains that stress or fear can lead to inflammation but if physical damage does not occur, the body needs to stop immediately, otherwise it will cause harm.

Previous research has shown that early stress can reduce the density of a hormone - glucocorticoid - that often functions to stop the inflammatory response.

Dr. Danese hypothesized that in abused children, low levels of glucocorticoids can lead to high levels of inflammation. 'What we've observed is the long-term impact of stress from a period when children are particularly vulnerable. Can this be reversed as a question we cannot answer? '

Professor Brent Taylor, professor of child health at the University of London, says these findings add biological evidence to what experts already know.

'The research is meaningful. We have known for a long time that a poor environment or poor quality child care is associated with reduced life expectancy as well as other health problems. Perhaps this study implies that more attention should be paid to preventing abuse in children. '

Thien Kim