Maternal adverse childhood experiences and lifetime experiences of racial discrimination

Abstract

Growing evidence shows parents' exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and lifetime experiences of racial discrimination (EOD) negatively impacts not only their own health, but also their children's health. ACEs and EOD can be conceptualized as a reflection of shared underlying adversities and structural injustices that manifest in inequitable educational and employment opportunities and differential treatment by public policies and programs that impede parents' capacity to support their families. Therefore, a potentially important, but underexplored, mechanism of effects of parent ACEs and EOD on the next generation is through effects on household material hardships. Using cross-sectional survey data collected from 1629 mothers of young children aged <4 years during pediatric healthcare visits in four US cities (Baltimore, MD; Boston, MA; Little Rock, AR; Philadelphia, PA), we examined individual and joint associations of mothers' ACEs and EOD with their health and their children's health, as well as household-level material hardships. In demographics-adjusted Poisson and multinomial logistic regression models, mothers who had experienced high ACEs, high EOD, or high combined ACE-EOD reported more household hardships and were less likely to report that they and their young children were in good health. Mediation analyses showed evidence that associations with maternal health were partially mediated by household hardships. Our results suggest that maternal ACEs and EOD may undermine maternal and child health via household hardships, along with other potential mechanisms. Counteracting downstream effects of these adversities requires timely intervention on multiple levels, including addressing remediable household hardships. Ultimately, a focus on achieving equity comprehensively through policy design and implementation is needed to realize the full potential of public policies for supporting family and child health.