Comparing bullying to ACEs in the national survey of children's health: Examining 2016–2019 prevalence trends among children and adolescents

Objectives To estimate adverse childhood experience (ACE) prevalence among children and adolescents aged 6–17 years in the United States, to examine factors influencing the prevalence of ACEs over the time period 2016–2019, and to examine the difference in bullying trends compared to ACEs in the NSCH. Participants and setting The National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) is a cross-sectional survey. Participants included respondents who completed the separate surveys for ages 6–11 and 12–17 from 2016 to 2019. Methods Cumulative ACEs were analyzed to determine the change in prevalence of having at least one ACE, overall and stratified by age group. Results Overall prevalence was highest among income difficulties (16–26 %); parent/guardian divorced or separated (29–31 %); and bullying (21–48 %). There was a significant time trend for income difficulties (decreased; p < 0.001), lived with anyone with a mental illness (increased; p = 0.004), racial/ethnic mistreatment (increased; p = 0.004), and bullying (increased; p < 0.001). Cumulative prevalence trends without bullying decreased significantly from 2016 to 2019 while prevalence trends for bullying increased significantly during this time frame. Sex, age, and race/ethnicity were significantly associated with some of the ACEs. Conclusions Trend of ACEs varies as prevalence of some ACEs increased while decreasing for others over time. Also, ACEs appear to affect children and adolescents differently according to sex, age group, and racial/ethnic background, which warrants the need to prioritize efforts to decrease the exposure to ACEs.