Health
Parent-child bonds may affect your midlife health
New York, Sep 22 : Growing up in a well-off home can benefit a child's physical health, but lack of good relationship with parents, or the presence of abuse, may affect health, as well as well-being during mid-life, a study has found.
"Good parent-child bonds may be necessary to enforce eating, sleeping and activity routines," said researcher Assistant Professor Matthew A. Andersson at Baylor University in Texas, US.
The study found that if the parent-child relationships are strained or abusive, meals may be less coordinated among the family, and children are more likely to eat sugary or high-fat foods as snacks, even in place of proper meals.
Sleep and activity routines could also become irregular, keeping children from developing healthy lifestyles and social and emotional skills necessary for successful ageing.
On the other hand, good parent-child bonds in economically disadvantaged homes, might promote health, but do not seem to lessen the negative impact of low socio-economic status as the children age, Andersson said.
Parents with less education and fewer financial advantages are more apt to threaten or force obedience rather than have constructive dialogue, and that may lessen warm relations.
In addition, disease rates or inflammation among those children when they become adults have been linked strongly to abuse, mistreatment or lower levels of parental warmth.
"Without adequate parent-child relationship quality to match, socio-economic advantage during childhood may not offer much protection against major chronic disease as children become adults and reach middle age," Andersson stated.
In the study, good health at mid-life was defined as being free from 28 possible conditions -- cancer, circulatory or respiratory disease, endocrine diseases, nervous system diseases, infectious and parasitic diseases, skin and digestive disease and musculoskeletal conditions.
For the study, the team analysed data on disease or poor health of middle-aged adults. They surveyed 2,746 respondents aged 25 to 75 in 1995 about their childhood treatment by parents.
Surveys were conducted again nearly 10 years later, with 1,692 of the individuals taking part.
The follow-up analysis revealed that childhood abuse continued to undermine any protection from disease when linked to childhood socio-economic advantage, the researchers concluded, in the paper published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior.
10 hours ago
German-Iranian national executed in Iran; long time US resident was 'Israeli spy,' says Tehran
10 hours ago
Trump Claims Google CEO Sundar Pichai Called to Praise His McDonald's Visit in Pennsylvania
10 hours ago
US Elections: Fires at ballot drop boxes being probed, say officials
10 hours ago
'Greetings from the ISS': NASA astronaut Sunita Williams extends wishes Diwali wishes from space
11 hours ago
'Selected Kamala to be my running mate for many reasons...': President Biden lauds VP Harris ahead of polls
11 hours ago
Too much on line to sit this election out : President Biden casts ballot in Delaware
12 hours ago
Sara Ali Khan says ‘Jai Bhole Nath’ as she seeks blessings at Kedarnath
12 hours ago
Cops arrest NOIDA man for issuing death threats to Salman Khan
12 hours ago
This is the skill Tamannaah Bhatia hopes to learn from Manish Malhotra
12 hours ago
Hina Khan channels her inner ‘Desi girl’
12 hours ago
Jeremy Allen White's first look unveiled from his Bruce Springsteen biopic
12 hours ago
Bradley Cooper was ‘shocked’ to be named Sexiest Man Alive in 2011
12 hours ago
HC cancels work tender to private security agency in Bengal govt hospitals