Witnessing Interparental Violence in Childhood and Frailty in Adulthood: Evidence From a National Population-Based Study in China.

OBJECTIVES

This study examines the relationship between witnessing parental violence-a specific type of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)-and frailty in adulthood, employing a graded exposure measurement approach.

DESIGN

A population-based cross-sectional study.

SETTING AND

PARTICIPANTS

Data from 6490 adults aged ≥45 years from the 2014 wave of the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) were analyzed. Frailty was assessed using the Frailty Index (FI). Exposure was measured by 3 items and categorized into low, medium, and high levels.

METHODS

Linear and logistic regression models were employed to examine the associations between exposure and continuous FI scores, as well as frailty risk (FI ≥ 0.25), respectively. All models were adjusted for age, gender, marital status, rural/urban residence, education, smoking, alcohol use, and body mass index. Dose-response relationships were further evaluated using restricted cubic spline (RCS) models, with optimal knot selection to improve model fit.

RESULTS

Higher exposure scores were significantly associated with increased FI (β = 0.004, P < .001) and frailty risk (odds ratio, 1.08; 95% CI, 1.04-1.12). RCS models revealed a monotonic increase in frailty with greater exposure.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Witnessing interparental violence in childhood is significantly linked to higher frailty in adulthood. Interventions addressing domestic violence may contribute to healthier aging outcomes.