An important report challenges California policy makers to move well beyond ACEs screening in order to achieve the state's "bold goal" of reducing exposure to childhood trauma. The report employs a broad social science framework to examine the sources of adversity in systemic racism, economic inequality, environmental hazards, and inadequate community resources to support community resilience.

Policy changes can be key to both transforming health in a community and helping to eliminate inequities. But when policies aren’t created or enforced with equity in mind, they may perpetuate these disparities – or even amplify them.

Adversity in childhood can be prevented by going upstream and creating social policies that support optimal familial environments in early childhood. Such policies could focus on parenting, parent mental health and substance use, and poverty reduction, among other targets.

Exactly! Dr. McEwen, we so need to bring esteemed historian and patriot Heather Cox Richardson, PhD, into the conversation and exhortations on the science of positive and adverse childhood experiences. Were Dr. Richardson, author of the almost daily " Letters from an American " to frame our nation’s history through the lens of the traumas our peoples have endured, it would explain so much about our current collective trauma. Were she to link for her thousands of followers the science of how...

Dr. McEwen, This is not something new It is yet another study that indicates the focus of PACES research should be on the causative social and cultural factors.

Note: PACEs Connection is in dire financial straits. We are asking for support, from you, our 57,586 members, to help cover the loss of foundation funding that was promised and did not come through. Pay and hours have been cut for our staff—most of us will be laid off for the month of December. Another grant will pick up in January, but we will still be underfunded. Since sounding the alarm this summer, we’ve raised about $26,000 . Thankfully, about 25% of new donors are making monthly...