If you’re starting to get on the older side of motherhood and are unsure whether or not to try for another baby, a recent study may provide some encouragement.
According to a recent study in the journal, Child Development, children born to older parents are better behaved.
About the study
The study looked at 32,892 Dutch children between the ages of 10 and 13. The focus was on Dutch mothers due to their overall high maternal age at the birth of their first baby and relatively few teenage pregnancies.
The parents ranged between the ages of 16 and 68, and they studied the behaviours of their children according to themselves, their parents and their teachers.
There was a focus on what they refer to as ‘externalising problem behaviour’ which are behaviours which are directed towards others of a person’s environment. Some examples are: bullying, vandalism and arson.
The results: Children born to older mothers are better behaved
The article confirmed, “a beneficial association between advanced parental age and externalising problem behaviour.”
That is, older parents have children who are less likely to display externalising problem behaviour.
But why?
Look, we all know older mums are spectacular beings already, but the article provides some suggestions on why this may be.
They suggest that, “being a child of older parents can have substantial benefits, as older parents not only are often in a better socioeconomic position than young parents, thereby providing a more favorable environment for children, they also have greater life experience.”
It is also suggested that, “older parents display more hardiness and tend to have less substance use and fewer mental health problems, hence score higher on parenting factors that promote health and development.”
In case you didn’t already know why older mums are extra special, have a look at research published last year which revealed: “While mothers in their early 20s were more likely to struggle with anxious or anti-social children, mothers who had their children later were less likely to have children with these kinds of issues.”
And if you’re a young mum, you’re super amazing for other reasons and have every right to celebrate like all mums do.
This article was republished with permission from Kidspot
(Featured Image: FACEBOOK/FANN WONG)
Also READ: 7 Singapore celebrity mums who gave birth in their 40s!
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