People who join the military are more likely to report being abused
as children, and that trauma may be more closely linked to suicide
risk than trauma experienced during deployment, researchers suggest.
"It’s not that deployment-related trauma is not significant, but the
relationship is less than childhood-related trauma," said lead
author Tracie Afifi, of the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg.
Previous studies have connected child abuse with increased risks of
suicidal thoughts and attempts, the researchers write in JAMA
Psychiatry. Other studies have found that military personnel are
more likely to have been abused as children, which may partially
explain that group's increased risk of suicidal thoughts.
To examine the relationship between child abuse and suicide in the
military, the researchers analyzed data from 8,161 members of the
Canadian armed forces and 15,981 people in the general Canadian
population. Participants were ages 18 to 60; their data were
collected in 2012 and 2013.
About 48 percent of people in Canada's regular forces and about 49
percent of reserved forces deployed to Afghanistan said they'd been
abused as children, compared to about 33 percent of the general
public.
"We found almost half that enter the military in Canada had a
history of child abuse," Afifi told Reuters Health.
The study can't say why child abuse reports are so much more common
among people in the military.
But the researchers did find that, as in the general population, a
history of child abuse is tied to an increased risk of suicidal
thoughts, plans and attempts among military members.
The relationships between child abuse and suicidal thoughts,
attempts and actions were weaker in the military members than in the
general population, which might be explained by the fact that
screening during military recruitment and service may select more
resilient individuals.
It could also be that the military's environment of secured food,
housing and employment are also protective.
Generally, however, suicidal tendencies were more closely tied to a
child abuse history than to deployment related traumas.
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"The findings with child abuse were stronger and more robust," Afifi
said.
The new findings agree with past research, according to John
Blosnich, who co-wrote an editorial about the new study.
"Childhood adversity has really stark significant ramifications for
adult health, which I think anyone can get on board with and
understand," said Blosnich, who is affiliated with the VA Pittsburgh
Healthcare System.
He told Reuters Health that the study shows clinicians should
probably look at a person's lifespan if they're experiencing
problems.
"What happens pre-military could be potentially important
information that we don’t always get," Blosnich said.
The researchers also say their findings suggest preventing child
abuse may reduce suicide-related outcomes.
"From a broad public health point of view, we know that suicide and
child abuse are important public health problems," Afifi said. "We
know this is the case in both military and general populations. If
we can prevent child abuse, then we can reduce the prevalence of
suicide in our populations as well."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/20sY5Cn and http://bit.ly/20sY9BY JAMA
Psychiatry, online January 27, 2016.
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