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Data analyzed by

State Health Compare

Percent of children with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)

Measure Overview

It is widely understood that safe, stable, and nurturing environments during childhood promote better health outcomes, economic opportunity, and quality of life in adulthood. Unfortunately, each year millions of children under the age of 18 experience traumatic events, known as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). ACEs include all types of physical and emotional abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction, which can have lifelong impacts on health and wellness. Tracking data on ACEs can help identify populations that are at increased risk of childhood trauma and inform efforts to reduce the prevalence of ACEs in the United States.

State Health Compare provides state-level rates of ACEs based on findings from the National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) public-use files. The data are available for two-year periods (e.g., 2016-2017) and can be viewed across several breakdowns: number of ACEs, age group, type of health insurance, education level, poverty level, and race/ethnicity.

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