STRONG LINKS HAVE BEEN FOUND between child maltreatment (Box 1) and alcohol use, especially when drinking is harmful or
hazardous (1). A number of studies have established that alcohol is a significant contributory factor to child maltreatment, and many show that being maltreated as a child is associated with marked increases in the risk of hazardous or harmful drinking in later life. This fact sheet details the role of harmful alcohol consumption in child maltreatment; its lifelong impact on alcohol use patterns in people who were maltreated as children, and the role of public health in prevention.