Brandeis psychologist Margie Lachman with Gregory Miller and colleagues at the University of British Columbia and the University of California, Los Angeles; in their recent studies, have reported that adults who had nurturing mothers in childhood have better physical health in midlife.

They suggest that while children brought up in families with low socioeconomic status (SES) often have high frequencies of chronic illness in adulthood, a significant minority population continues to remain healthy during the life time.

Their research essentially, sought to examine if parental nurturance could mitigate the effects of childhood disadvantage.

Explaining their scientific intent with this study, Lachman, the Minnie and Harold Fierman Professor of Psychology, and director of the Lifespan Initiative on Healthy Aging, said that her team is working to understand the sources of social disparities in health and what can be done to reduce them; which will subsequently, be used to empower families through education.

Further relating, she said that scientific literature review reveals that many of the health problems in midlife, including metabolic syndrome, can be traced back to what happened in early childhood; and that the stresses of childhood can leave a biological residue that shows up in midlife. Also, she pointed out that among those at risk for poor health, adults who had nurturing mothers in childhood fared better in physical health in midlife.

Over a thousand people were followed in this study for more than ten years. Their nurturance was assessed with data and included questions such as: “How much did she understand your problems and worries?” and “how much time and attention did she give you when you needed it?”

Addressing aspects of utilizing the findings of this study, Lachman said, “We would like to try to use this information to bolster vulnerable families who are at risk for not doing well. Teaching them parenting skills to show children concern for their welfare, how to cope with stress, that they have some control over their destinies, and how to engage in health-promoting behaviors such as good diet and exercise – the things that could protect against metabolic syndrome.”

An interesting thing to note here is that, in this study, paternal nurturing did not contribute to resilience. These findings have been recently, published in the journal Psychological Science.

Popularity: 3% [?]