Child Abuse Aaron Adams

Child Abuse Facts Five children die everyday in the United States due to child abuse related injuries. Most of these children are under six years old. In the U.S. one in every five children is abused. 90% of the abusers are someone the child knows, most of the time it is one of their parents.

More Facts There are four types of abuse: neglect, physical, emotional, and sexual. No one form can be considered worse than others due to the damage each one causes. Most of the time multiple forms of abuse are used at the same time.

Physical Abuse Physical abuse is the use of feet, fists, or an object to cause bodily harm to a child. This can cause bruises, broken bones, or severe bodily trauma. Doctors and nurses are now trained to tell the difference between a legitimate accident or physical abuse. Boys are more likely to be physically abused than girls.

Actual X-Ray of an abused child’s arm.

Emotional Abuse Emotional abuse is when the abusers uses insults, taunts, and humiliating situations to degrade a child. Emotional abuse is often teamed with neglect to increase suffering in a child. This can cause the child to grow up feeling worthless and in rare cases become suicidal. This can sometimes follow a child when they become an adult. Both genders are statistically equal when it comes to emotional abuse.

Neglect of a child When a child has been left alone for extended periods of time without food, water, and sanitary equipment they are being neglected. Neglect is often tied to emotional abuse. Like emotional abuse the effects of neglect can last into adulthood. A child that has been neglected may have their mental and physical growth stunted as a result.

Sexual Abuse Sexual abuse occurs when a child touched in inappropriate places. Girls are more likely to be abused than boys. Sexually abused children often refuse to be in close contact with other people or will not dress out for physical education. This may affect how a child develops relationships as an adult.

Famous abused children Out of the millions of abused children some become famous either by learning how to live with what happened or by telling the world the story of their childhood. Dave Pelzer even wrote his life and the abuse during it most famously in A Child Called “It” ; he continues to help people live with the memories of their own abuse. Many people you may even know of have been abused.

Famous people abused as children Queen Latifa Michael Jackson Dave Pelzer in kindergarten Dave Pelzer (author of A Child Called “It”) Oprah Winfrey Robin Willams