Childhood Abuse Leaves Doubling Risk of Health and Mental Health Issues in Adulthood, Finds Study
A new study published this week in Child Maltreatment found that in comparison to those who had not been abused in childhood, adults who had experienced both childhood physical and sexual abuse had approximately double the odds of physical and mental health conditions, including angina, arthritis, asthma, COPD, heart attack, depression, and disability -- even after considering respondents’ age, race, income, and health behaviors, as well as obesity.
Those who had been sexually abused, but not physically abused, were 55% to 90% more likely to experience these health outcomes compared to their peers who had not experienced any abuse. Adults who were physically abused, but not sexually abused, also had significantly elevated odds of these health outcomes compared to the non-abused, but the associations were more modest
In exploring this association, the study also examined whether the presence of an adult in the home who made the child feel safe and protected was associated with better long-term health outcomes among children who experienced abuse.
The presence of a protective adult was not only important for children who had experienced abuse, but important for children who had not been abused as well. Children without a protective adult in their home, irrespective of childhood abuse status, were 20% to 40% more likely to experience adverse physical health outcomes and twice as likely to suffer from depression in adulthood.
The study’s authors point to the need for future research to unpack these findings in particular.
“It will be important in future research to investigate why some adults in the home are not adequately protective of children, and to discuss potential primary prevention interventions that can help parents provide a more protective environment for children,” said co-author Philip Baiden, an Associate Professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Texas at Arlington
Ref: The Role of Protective Adults in Mitigating Health Outcomes Linked to Childhood Physical and Sexual Abuse., Child Maltreatment (2025). DOI: 10.1177/10775595251322084
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