Children below the age of 11-years-old whose parents have divorced or separated are more likely to turn to drinking and smoking when they are in their teens. A new study has indicated that this is another downside to parental absence, which further proves how the loss of a parent impacts children.
Researchers of the study, which was published in the Archives of Disease In Childhood, have learned that children with absentee parents due to a divorce or separation develop risky behaviors when the kids turn teenagers. Regardless of which parent moves out of the house, the impact to the child is the same.
The researchers looked into data that involves 19,000 children from the United Kingdom, where one in four kids have separated or divorced parents. The researchers also tracked the health of these kids for two years and have taken into account factors like ethnicity and education of the parents in studying the results.
The experts discovered that 15 percent of the boys and 10 percent of the girls under the age of 11-years-old in these families have already tried alcohol. Of these numbers, 12 percent of the boys and 6.6 percent of the girls have gotten drunk. Consequently, 46 percent of the children with separated or divorced parents have also tried smoking, EurekAlert reports.
Further, the researchers learned that children who have lost a parent due to death are less likely to turn to these vices. If they did, however, about 12 percent admitted to getting drunk. The experts note that kids who experience parental absence in childhood develop "less healthy coping mechanisms" to counter their moods and feelings.
It is the study's hope to emphasize on how vital emotional and physical support is to young children in a volatile domestic situation. It also hopes to stress on the need for early intervention in cases where children have gotten off track. If the situation is addressed when children are having hard time with the separation or divorce, then it's easier for a child to make a better life as an adult.
What do you think, parents? How can divorced or separated couples make their situation less harmful to the child? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
