Women who were physically, verbally or sexually abused as children are more likely to engage in dangerous sexual behaviors as adults.

The more adversity that someone experiences as a child, the more likely they are to engage in these at-risk behaviors.

Investigators retrieved data from a 1995 survey of more than 5,000 women over the age of 25 who were members of a managed care organization.

The women were asked to report on whether their childhood experiences included physical, verbal or sexual abuse, witnessing partner violence, or living with substance abusers, criminals or mentally ill individuals.

The survey participants were also asked whether they had sex before the age of 15, had more than 30 sex partners, or considered themselves at risk for getting AIDS, a marker for engaging in sex without protection or with high-risk partners.

According to the report, nearly 60% of the women reported having had at least one of these negative experiences during childhood. Those who experienced any of these adverse childhood experiences were at a significantly increased of engaging in detrimental sexual behaviors.

For example, women who had experienced one of these adverse events were twice as likely to have had sex before the age 15 and to have had 30 or more sexual partners, compared to women who had never experienced any of these adverse childhood events.

Compared with women who had experienced none of the adverse events, women who reported experiencing all of the negative childhood experiences were:

• 11 times more likely to have had sex before age 15
• Seven times more likely to perceive themselves at risk for AIDS
  
• 14 times more likely to have had more than 30 sex partners

Family Planning Perspectives September/October 2001;33:206-211