Millions of children are abused in the United States every year, averaging at about one child abuse report every 10 seconds. Child abuse happens in all types of households, of different income levels, ethnicities, and religious backgrounds. The effects on children who face child abuse are long-standing and detrimental to their emotional, and even physical health. In fact, 60% of people being rehabilitated for drug abuse report being abused as children, and abused children are 25% more likely to experience teen pregnancy, and 3 times less likely to use safe sex practices.

Unfortunately, these are not the worst consequences of abuse, an average of 5 children die every day due to child abuse. No parent wants this for their child, and by understanding some of the leading stresses that cause both the rich and the poor to abuse their children, we can work together to prevent abuse from occurring.

Marital Problems
Parents who have serious marital problems, physical or psychological, are more likely to abuse their children. The likelihood of abuse increases in a marriage that has physical abuse involved, as the violence can often be turned on the child over time. Parents who are having major problems communicating or getting along should seek the help of a family therapist, so they can resolve their issues and provide a safe, non-hostile environment for their child.

Substance Abuse
Alcohol or drug abuse drastically increases the chance of a parent or family member abusing a child. Substances can greatly decrease a person's ability to make good decisions, and many alcoholics have serious anger management issues, which increase under the influence of substances. In addition to the apparent harm such a habit could cause a child, many states have laws against children being exposed to alcohol and drug use, especially in potentially hostile manner.

Financial Strain
Child abuse prevention experts and advocates have noticed an obvious hike in child abuse investigations at the hike of the economic recession. This information confirms the profuse number of studies drawing a correlation between financial strain within a household and child abuse. Parents who are struggling with the bills will sometimes turn their frustrations on their children, often in an emotional manner.

Parent Responsibilities
Raising and infant or baby can be especially stressful for parents, because they rely on their guardians for everything. Unfortunately this helps create a sad statistic that 80% of abused children are under the age of three, 65% of those children being less than one year old. Raising a child at every age is difficult, but parents should remember that they are not alone, and consider joining a parent support group to help them give their child the attention and love they deserve.

History of Abuse
Adults with their own history of being abused by their parents are more likely to pass on that abuse to their children then parents who were not abused as children. Every parent should take extreme caution when disciplining their children to make sure the tactics are not abusive.

Child's Disabilities
Being the parent of a child with a disability can sometimes feel like you are parenting several children at once, due to the extra attention needed and sometimes rapid and extreme mood changes. Parents with special needs children may crack under the pressure, adding to the sad statistic showing a significant amount of abused children have disabilities. Parents of children with a learning disability should seek the advice of other parents, and stay open to therapy for their child and themselves to prevent any unnecessary aggression.