McGill University Details Findings in Science [Understanding depression through an intersectional framework: the joint impact of childhood adversities and social determinants using Canadian longitudinal study on aging (CLSA) data].

This article focuses on a study from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, examining how adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and intersecting social factors such as sex, socioeconomic status (SES), and ethnicity collectively influence depression risk. Using data from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA), which includes over 20,000 adults aged 45 and older, researchers identified three distinct ACE patterns and found that high ACE exposure increased depression risk, particularly among females, individuals with low SES, and non-White groups. The study highlights that cumulative disadvantages across multiple marginalized identities exacerbate vulnerability to depression, while male sex and high SES appear protective in the absence of ACEs. The findings emphasize the importance of equity-oriented prevention strategies that address the complex interplay of childhood adversities and social determinants. [Extracted from the article]