Slate Magazine, May 13, 2016: The stress low-income kids experience hurts them biologically. How we punish them doesn’t help
“Where is this toxic stress coming from? For many kids who grow up in poverty, associated adverse childhood experiences (or ACEs)—including abuse, neglect, mental illness among parents, or an unstable family structure—are a known source of debilitating stress and longterm dysfunction. A landmark 1985 study of 17,000 members of Kaiser Permanente’s San Diego care program by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that at least 40 percent of Americans experienced two or more ACEs during their childhood. These traumas were likely the root cause of the future dysfunctions that ranged from chronic health issues to alcoholism to suicide.”