Victorious Heart Inc. ca

Child abuse is traumatic and happens often, it changes DNA, Johnny Gosch

The large study below shows that child abuse is traumatic and sexual abuse

happens to one in four women and one in six men.

The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study is one of the largest

investigations ever conducted on the links between childhood maltreatment and

later-life health and well-being. As a collaboration between the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention and Kaiser Permanente's Health Appraisal

Clinic in San Diego, Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) members undergoing a

comprehensive physical examination provided detailed information about

their childhood experience of abuse, neglect, and family dysfunction. Over

17,000 members chose to participate. ...The ACE Study findings suggest that

these experiences are major risk factors for the leading causes of illness and

death as well as poor quality of life in the United States._

http://www.cdc. gov/nccdphp/ ACE/_ (http://www.cdc. gov/nccdphp/ ACE/)

Childhood abuse, neglect, and exposure to other traumatic stressors which

we term adverse childhood experiences (ACE) are common. Almost two-thirds

of our study participants reported at least one ACE, and more than one in

five reported three or more ACE. The short- and long-term outcomes of these

childhood exposures include a multitude of health and social problems.... as

the number of ACE increase, the risk for the following health problems

increases in a strong and graded fashion: * alcoholism and alcohol abuse

* chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) * depression *

fetal death * health-related quality of life * illicit drug use *

ischemic heart disease (IHD) * liver disease * risk for intimate

partner violence * multiple sexual partners * sexually transmitted

diseases (STDs) * smoking * suicide attempts * unintended

pregnancies_ http://www.cdc. gov/nccdphp/ ACE/findings. htm_

(http://www.cdc. gov/nccdphp/ ACE/findings. htm)

Prevalence of Individual Adverse Childhood Experiences

Women (N = 9,367)

Men (N = 7,970)

(N = 17,337)

Abuse Women Men Total

Emotional Abuse 13.1 7.6 10.6

Physical Abuse 27.0 29.9 28.3

Sexual Abuse 24.7 16.0 20.7_

http://www.cdc. gov/nccdphp/ ACE/prevalence. htm_ (http://www.cdc. gov/nccdphp/ ACE/prevalence. htm)

Johnny Gosch: A Proof of Life

_http://www.franklin files.net/ index.spark? aBID=120661& p=3&topicID= 34290611_

(http://www.franklin files.net/ index.spark? aBID=120661& p=3&topicID= 34290611)

Mind & Brain / Mental Health - Top 100 Stories of 2009 #61: Child Abuse

Leaves Its Mark on Victim's DNA - The brains of people who were abused as

children and then commit suicide show DNA modifications that made them

particularly sensitive to stress. by Amy Barth

From the January-February special issue; published online December 28,

2009

Childhood trauma may leave a lasting imprint not just on the psyche but

also in the DNA. This news comes from McGill University and the Suicide Brain

Bank, a Quebec-based organization that carried out autopsies on suicide

victims who had been abused as kids. Across the board, their brains showed

DNA modifications that made them particularly sensitive to stress. Although

gene variations are primarily inherited at conception, the findings show

that environmental impacts can also introduce them later on. "The idea that

abuse changes how genes function opens a new window for behavioral and drug

therapy," says study leader and neuroscientist Patrick McGowan.

During periods of adversity, the brain triggers release of cortisol, a

hormone responsible for the fight-or-flight response. Due to differential gene

expression associated with stress, the brains of child-abuse victims had

lower levels of glucocorticoid receptors, McGowan found. Cortisol normally

binds to these receptors; with fewer of them present, there is more cortisol

and less resilience to feelings of stress.

_http://discovermaga zine.com/ 2010/jan- feb/061_ (http://discovermaga zine.com/ 2010/jan- feb/061)