A study reveals how children mentally break down after abuse

It has been revealed that child abuse has a severe impact on the future health and development of children. The results of several local studies on the effects of child abuse, conducted by the Hong Kong non-governmental organization 'Against Child Abuse', were recently presented. They showed that such victims have a high risk of developing health problems later in life, such as obesity and various inflammatory responses in the body.

The organization further emphasizes that existing mechanisms for child protection should be strengthened, and adequate resources and new strategic plans should be introduced for this purpose.

According to a study published in 2024, involving 661 children, a lack of proper care from an early age directly affects the normal growth rate of children. It was observed that children who are constantly subjected to neglect and psychological abuse tend to have a lower Body Mass Index (BMI) later in life, while children who are physically abused have a higher probability of becoming obese in the future. Additionally, another study involving 63 abuse victims revealed that they do not receive proper affection from their mothers, and their inflammatory responses remain at a high level years later due to a lack of family support compared to normal children.

Professor Patrick Ip Pak-keung of the University of Hong Kong, who contributed to these studies, states that children in Hong Kong currently face a severely disadvantaged situation due to internal family stress and deteriorating family environments. Another study involving a group of 232 mothers and children shows that mothers becoming pregnant again within two years leads to increased mental stress, which in turn raises the risk of children experiencing physical abuse. As a result, the number of children frequently admitted to emergency departments has also increased. Furthermore, a separate study found that maternal drug use is a major contributing factor to the increase in physical violence against children.

Maple Lau Siu-kwan, Director of 'Against Child Abuse', has highlighted the importance of implementing a three-pronged prevention strategy to reduce child abuse. The first step proposes developing good parenting skills and teaching children self-protection, based on a zero-tolerance policy for violence against children. The second step involves early identification of families at risk of abuse and providing appropriate interventions, and the third step plans to prevent recurrent abuse through professional intervention.

According to official data, the number of child abuse cases reported in Hong Kong increased by 44% from 940 in 2020 to 1,354 by last year. The organization believes that factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, social and economic problems, and increased public awareness have contributed to this statistical rise. To control this situation, authorities passed a new law in July 2024, which mandates professionals from 25 categories in social welfare, health, and education sectors to report suspected child abuse cases to the authorities. Under this new act, effective from January 20 this year, if a professional fails to report relevant incidents, he or she can be sentenced to three months in prison and fined HK$50,000.