In the US, an estimated 906,000 children are victims of abuse & neglect every year. Child abuse can be physical, emotional, sexual, or take the form of child neglect. Child abuse cuts across all social classes and ethnicities.

 The abuse overwhelmingly is at the hands of those who are supposed to be protecting the child; the parents,other relatives, teachers, pastors etc.  This article focuses on child neglect. Recognizing these signs may someday enable you to help a child suffering from neglect.

NEGLECT

Child neglect is the most prevalent form of child abuse.  Child neglect occurs when the responsible adult fails to adequately provide for various needs of the child, including but not limited to the following:

Physical Neglect - Failure to provide shelter, food and/or clothing.  Failure to provide adequate or needed medical attention also falls under this category and can result in poor overall health and compounded medical problems in the future.

Emotional Neglect - Failure to provide nurturance, support and affection. Ignoring, rejecting, terrorizing or verbally abusing (belittling) a child usually leads to low self esteem, future alcohol or drug abuse, destructive behavior and even suicide.

Exposing a child to illegal activities such as drug and alcohol abuse or encouraging/allowing a child to use either or both is another form of child neglect.

Failure to provide a child with adequate education (especially for special needs children) is also characterized as neglect, as it poses a serious threat to the child’s emotional well-being and normal psychological development resulting in the child’s inability to acquire basic life skills.

SIGNS

Inappropriate dress.  Clothes may be too big or small, dirty or not appropriate for the season.  The child’s hygiene is poor and he/she appears unsupervised and may be violent towards other children or entirely withdrawn and passive.  May often arrive to school late and perform poorly or not at all.  The child usually does not Parents seem largely absent from the child’s life.  Bruises may appear on the child’s face and body due to frequent accidental injuries indicative of lack of supervision.  The child may be suffering from a medical condition that she/he is not receiving treatment for and may often be hungry and/or appear malnourished.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

If you suspect that a child is suffering from neglect report it to your local child protective services agency or contact the police.  Professionals who work with children are required by law to report reasonable suspicion of abuse and neglect to the police.  For more information on child abuse in general see the link below.