Most child soldiers are from 15 to 17 years old, but others are as young as 7. Because age documentation does not exist in many areas, children are frequently passed off as older than they are. Children have always been used in war. Under these circumstances, distinguishing between a forced and a voluntary child soldier is difficult. Armed forces and paramilitary groups use both girls and boys in many roles.
Children commonly start out in support positions, acting as porters, cooks, spies, or sexual slaves.
Often, though, these children end up on the front lines of combat, e.g., planting or detecting landmines or participating in first-wave assaults. Child soldiers are frequently subject to extreme abuse and manipulation during training and combat, and generally suffer higher casualty rates than adults. Often plied with drugs and given promises of food, shelter, and security, child soldiers are at times forced to commit atrocities against other armed groups and civilian populations, including sometimes their own families and communities. This use of children in war is greatly facilitated by an estimated 500 million small arms and assault weapons worldwide. Several initiatives are under way internationally to address the problem of child soldiers.