Child abuse is up as parents taking out financial stress on kids

This is an excerpt from an article written by Jasmine Jafferali and published on April 18, 2009 in the Chicago Family Health Examiner:

"Experts fear this recession is taking a toll on families reporting a rise in domestic and child abuse. The Illinois department of child and family services reported a 5.8 percent rise in child abuse cases in in 2008. In the Chicago area alone, child abuse cases rose more than 9 percent last year. Child abuse is classified in three different categories, physical, psychological and sexual.

Physical abuse is physical aggression directed at a child by an adult. It can involve striking, burning, choking or shaking a child, and the distinction between discipline and abuse is often poorly defined. The transmission of toxins to a child through their mother (such as with fetal alcohol syndrome) can also be considered physical abuse in some jurisdictions.

Child sexual abuse is any sexual act between an adult and a child, including penetration, fondling, exposure to adult sexuality and violations of privacy.

Psychological abuse, also known as emotional abuse, which can involve belittling or shaming a child, and the withholding of affection.

The National Association of Social Workers has issued statements that “even the mildest forms of physical punishment lower children's self-esteem, constitute acts of violence, and teach children that physical force is an acceptable way to resolve conflicts.” In 2008, the Center for Disease Control published a recent study that found that 1 in 50 infants in the United States are victims of nonfatal neglect or abuse. There has been a rise in shaken-baby syndrome which bears distinct signs: brain hemorrhaging, retinal hemorrhaging and damage to the spine, neck or ribs."

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