Majority of adults report experiencing one adverse event during childhood

A new CDC report finds that 61% of U.S. adults have experienced at least one adverse event — such as violence or growing up in a family with substance or mental health issues — during childhood. These early experiences could have a negative influence on health later in life, and to that end, researchers also found that at least 5 of the 10 leading causes of death in the U.S. are associated with trauma in childhood. Those with negative childhood experiences, for instance, had a higher risk for many conditions, including obesity and depression, or for smoking or heavy drinking. At the same time, focusing efforts to prevent adverse experiences in childhood could help drop rates of COPD by nearly 27%, depression rates by 44%, and cut the rate of smoking by a third.