American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2022, 62(6): S1-S46

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Investments in Adverse Childhood Experience Prevention Efforts / Derrick W. Gervin, Kristin M. Holland, Phyllis G. Ottley, Gayle M. Holmes, Phyllis Holditch Niolon & James A. Mercy

Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences: The Role of Etiological, Evaluation, and Implementation Research / Jennifer L. Matjasko, Jeffrey H. Herbst & Lianne Fuino Estefan

Preventing Childhood Adversity Through Economic Support and Social Norm Strategies / Phyllis G. Ottley, Lindsey S. Barranco, Kimberley E. Freire,...Corey D. Lumpkin, Derrick W. Gervin & Gayle M. Holmes

Leveraging Surveillance and Evidence: Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences Through Data to Action / Angie S. Guinn, Phyllis G. Ottley, Kayla N. Anderson, Maureen L. Oginga, Derrick W. Gervin & Gayle M. Holmes

Building Infrastructure for Surveillance of Adverse and Positive Childhood Experiences: Integrated, Multimethod Approaches to Generate Data for Prevention Action / Kyla N. Anderson, Elizabeth A. Swedo, Heather B. Clayton, Phyllis Holditch Niolon, Daniel Shelby & Kathleen McDavid Harrison

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Overdose: Lessons From Overdose Data to Action / April C. Wisdom, Madhumita Govindu, Stephen J. Liu,...Derrick W. Gervin, Lara DePadilla & Kristin M. Holland

Lifelong health and well-being are rooted in developmental experiences faced during childhood.[1]. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are preventable, potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood (age 0–17 years) such as witnessing or experiencing violence, experiencing neglect, or having a family member attempt or die by suicide. Exposure to ACEs is linked to negative outcomes later in life, including chronic disease; mental health and substance use problems; and even lower education attainment, fewer job opportunities, and decreased earning potential. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].

More than 60% of adults report experiencing ≥1 ACE during childhood, and nearly 1 in 6 adults report experiencing ≥4 ACEs. [6]. Recent research suggests that preventing ACEs could potentially reduce millions of cases of heart disease, depression, and other negative health outcomes.6
Given the prevalence of ACEs, their documented impacts on future health and social outcomes, and the potential impacts of prevention efforts, investments in ACE prevention may help to improve public health across the lifespan.

In December 2019, the U.S. Congress appropriated $4 million toward the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s ACE prevention efforts for Fiscal Year 20 (FY20)—the first ever appropriation of its kind. However, for years before the formal receipt of funding, CDC invested resources in conducting surveillance on ACEs; studying the impact of ACEs on violence, injury, and other negative health outcomes; and developing, evaluating, implementing, and disseminating ACE prevention strategies (Appendix Figure 1, available online). CDC's investments in ACE prevention are driven by the public health approach: conducting surveillance to define the scope of the problem, identifying the risk and protective factors associated with ACEs, developing and testing prevention strategies, and implementing strategies that work to prevent ACEs and create healthy childhoods for all children. [7, 8]. (Authors' introduction to first article).

This article is in a supplement entitled Addressing Childhood Adversity in Violence Prevention Programs, which is sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). See above for the table of contents. All articles are open access and available in html or PDF via the link. Record #7701