Adverse Childhood Experiences in Infancy and Toddlerhood Predict Obesity and Health Outcomes in Middle Childhood

Background: The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study articulated the negative effects of childhood trauma on adult weight and health. The purpose of the current study is to examine the associations between ACEs in infancy and toddlerhood and obesity and related health indicators in middle childhood. Methods: We used data collected from a sample of low-income families enrolled in the national evaluation of Early Head Start (EHS). Data come from 1335 demographically diverse families collected at or near children's ages 1, 2, 3, and 11. An EHS-ACE index was created based on interview and observation items from data collected at ages 1, 2, and 3, which were averaged to represent exposure across infancy and toddlerhood. At age 11, children's height and weight were measured and parents were asked about their child's health. Results: Children were exposed at rates of 30%, 28%, 15%, and 8% to one, two, three, and four or more EHS-ACEs, respectively. Logistic regressions revealed significant associations between EHS-ACEs in infancy/toddlerhood and obesity, respiratory problems, taking regular nonattention-related prescriptions, and the parent's global rating of children's health at age 11. Across all outcomes examined, children with four or more ACEs had the poorest health. Compared with children with no ACE exposure, the odds of each of the examined health outcomes were over twice as high for children who experienced four or more ACEs. Conclusions: Findings highlight that ACEs experienced very early in development are associated with children whose health is at risk later in childhood.