Researchers found that the higher the number of health-harming behaviours experienced in childhood, the more likely children would grow up to experience drug addiction and other damaging behaviour.
Although deprivation was a factor, this was the case even for those who did not have a deprived home environment.
The authors of the report, Adverse Childhood Experience, argue that the findings give weight to the need for greater access to early intervention support to ensure all children have safe and happy childhoods.
The research highlights the importance of addressing the issue to improve the lives of the children affected and calculates that preventing 'adverse childhood experiences' in England could help reduce problem drug use and violence in adults by up to 50 per cent, those who have experienced teenage pregnancies by a third, and reduce levels of binge drinking and smoking by around 15 per cent. ??
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