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Not all is well with grandparents babysitting kids, study suggests
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Child Growth Foundation’s Tam Fry noted, “Finding a doting grandparent who is confident enough to follow rules laid down by [the parents], and to the letter, is a rarity.” (Shutterstock/File)
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study by Glasgow University’s Medical Council’s Public Health Science Unit suggests that grandparents may have the tendency to provide their grandchildren with unhealthy food and treatment during their development.
But do not stop your children from meeting their grandparents just yet as most of the problems are unintentional.
According to The Telegraph, grandparents are very restrictive of letting their grandchildren go outside. Coupled with their tendency to overfeed the children, this behavior has caused problems regarding their grandchildren's diet and their weight.
Cancer Research UK’s Professor Linda Bauld stated that grandparents also tend to increase their frequency of smoking in front of their grandchildren, which could lead to secondhand smoke.
Read also: Grandparents who babysit grandchildren tend to live longer: Study
These findings are troubling because an Avon Longitudinal Parents and Children (ALSPAC) analysis showed 44 percent of children spent an average of 10 hours a week with their grandparents.
Child Growth Foundation’s Tam Fry noted, “Finding a doting grandparent who is confident enough to follow rules laid down by [the parents], and to the letter, is a rarity.”
Lucy Peake, the chief executive of Grandparents Plus, an organization to support grandparents' role in their grandchildren’s lives, stated that since grandparents want the best for their grandchildren, it is best to inform the grandparents of these issues to prevent them from happening in the first place. (ezr/kes)
