Grandparents’ support can reduce depression in mothers: study

It does take a village to raise a child, but grandparent involvement can make the overwhelming experience of parenthood much more bearable, especially for mothers.

Finnish researchers have found that the support and help of grandparents can significantly reduce depression in mothers, highlighting their important role in their mental health, CNN mentionted.

This, in turn, reduces the likelihood that mothers will take antidepressants.

Based on a study that followed 488,000 mothers of young children in Finland, researchers observed that antidepressant use was higher among mothers whose parents and in-laws lived far away or were old and sick.

“Previous studies have consistently shown that younger grandparents in good health are more likely to provide support and care for children,” said study co-author Niina Metsä-Simola, a researcher at the University of Helsinki.

“Having an elderly and frail grandparent can put a strain even on mothers, as they cannot expect to receive support from such grandparents, but must continue to provide upward support,” he added in a press release from the publisher. of the magazine.

The depression phenomenon was more pronounced among women who separated from their partners between 2000 and 2014, because these women often have custody of their child and may need the help of relatives, according to Metsä-Simola.

“Mothers in such a situation may have to take on additional work, affecting their need for childcare and may even have to move home,” she said.

The study, published in the journal Population Studiessuggests that single parenting of young children may have an important effect on mental health, which may explain why grandparental support was “particularly important” for the separation of mothers’ mental health.

Finland and other Nordic countries offer mothers universal access to health, social services, affordable childcare, education and low-cost housing with care.

However, the researchers found an association between grandparents’ closeness, age, and health, and mothers’ use of antidepressants.

“Our study suggests that intergenerational exchanges of support matter for mothers’ mental health, even in the context of a Nordic welfare state where all parents — including single parents — benefit from generous institutional support,” said Metsä- Simola.

The researchers did not find a direct measure of intergenerational support, unable to determine the involvement of grandparents in child care.

They suggest that future studies investigate the impact of parental and in-law support on depression in childless women.