title: Adverse childhood experiences, dispositional mindfulness, and adult health.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether greater dispositional mindfulness is associated with better adult health across a range of exposures to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).
  
  
  METHODS
  In 2012, a web-based survey of 2160 Pennsylvania Head Start staff was conducted. We assessed ACE score (count of eight categories of childhood adversity), dispositional mindfulness (Cognitive and Affective Mindfulness Scale-Revised), and the prevalence of three outcomes: multiple health conditions (≥ 3 of 7 conditions), poor health behavior (≥ 2 of 5 behaviors), and poor health-related quality of life (HRQOL) (≥ 2 of 5 indicators).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Respondents were 97% females, and 23% reported ≥ 3 ACEs. The prevalences of multiple health conditions, poor health behavior, and poor HRQOL were 29%, 21%, and 13%, respectively. At each level of ACE exposure, health outcomes were better in those with greater mindfulness. For example, among persons reporting ≥ 3 ACEs, those in the highest quartile of mindfulness had a prevalence of multiple health conditions two-thirds that of those in the lowest quartile (adjusted prevalence ratio (95% confidence interval)=0.66 (0.51, 0.86)); for those reporting no ACEs, the ratio was 0.62 (0.41, 0.94).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Across a range of exposures to ACEs, greater dispositional mindfulness was associated with fewer health conditions, better health behavior, and better HRQOL.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Electronic address: rwhitaker@temple.edu.
authors.forename: Robert C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Whitaker
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Tracy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dearth-Wesley
authors.affiliation: Child Trends, Bethesda, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Rachel A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Gooze
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Brandon D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Becker
authors.affiliation: Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Kathleen C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Gallagher
authors.affiliation: Harold and Margaret Milliken Hatch Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Bruce S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: McEwen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006304:Health Status; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D064866:Mindfulness; D010414:Pennsylvania; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Child abuse; Child maltreatment; Child neglect; Chronic disease; Health behavior; Mindfulness; Quality of life; Stress, Psychological