A new study is shedding light on the harsh toll of homelessness on youth.

New research out of UC Berkeley found that homeless youth in San Francisco have a ten times higher mortality rate than their peers with permanent housing.

This population is highly stigmatized, said Colette Auerswald, associate professor at UC Berkeley, in a press release . That stigma leads to neglect and, in turn, to increased mortality.

Whats more, young women in the study were more likely to die than young men: the homeless female youth had a 16 times higher mortality rate than the average woman of their race and age, while men had a nine times higher mortality rate.

Women are in a very vulnerable place socially on the streets, Auerswald said to the Guardian . And theyre often in exploitative relationships where they are dependent on people who are hurting them in order to survive.