Nearly One-Third of Canadian Adults Experienced Child Abuse at Home

Nearly 32 percent of Canadian adults have experienced physical abuse, sexual abuse or intimate partner violence in their home, according to a new study.

The study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that almost one-third of adults in Canada have experienced child abuse and this in turn is associated with mental disorders, suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts.

"From a public health standpoint, these findings highlight the urgent need to make prevention of child abuse a priority in Canada," writes Dr. Tracie Afifi, at University of Manitoba, in a statement.

Though studies conducted earlier have linked child abuse to mental health problems, in Canada there is a lack of inclusive information on the occurrence of child abuse and the link between child abuse and mental condition in adults.   For this study, the researchers worked on the data of 23, 395  people who were a part of the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey: Mental Health.  These subjects, who were 18 years or older belonged to 10 different provinces.  In this study, people belonging to the indigenous communities, full-time members of the Canadian Forces and those residing in institutions were excluded.

The researchers noticed that 32 percent of the Canadian adults experienced child abuse in which physical abuse was most common at 26 percent.  This was followed by 10 percent of participants experiencing sexual abuse and 8 percent of them were exposed to intimate partner violence. 

When compared to women, men were more likely to be victims of physical abuse ( 21 percent women and 31 percent men). Also the higher rate of any type of abuse was more in men than women (34 percent men and 30 percent women).

In women, sexual abuse was more common. 14 percent women experienced sexual abuse compared to just 6 percent of men.  Also 9  percent women were victims of intimate partner violence compared to 7 percent men.  People between 35 and 64 years of age were more likely than those aged 18 to 34 years to report experiencing child abuse.

"All 3 types of child abuse were associated with all types of interview-diagnosed mental disorders, self-reported mental conditions, suicide ideation [thoughts of suicide] and suicide attempts in models adjusting for sociodemographic variables," write the authors.

Mental disorders, drug abuse, suicidal thought and suicide attempts were all linked with child abuse. The least severe physical abuse like being slapped on the head or face also had strong associations  with  mental disorders later. 

"All health care providers should be aware of the relation between specific types of child abuse and certain mental conditions. Clinicians working in the mental health field should be skilled in assessing patients for exposure to abuse and should understand the implications for treatment," the authors conclude.