Being a new mom is incredibly tough—particularly in the US, where women may lack access to paid leave, parenting support programs, and affordable childcare and health-care services. But research suggests that we need to start offering a lot more support and care to men making the transition to parenthood, too.
The past decade or so has seen increasing awareness of how important fathers are to their children’s development. With that understanding has come a renewed focus on new dads’ mental health, which can be vulnerable after the birth of a child. In 2004, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) began encouraging pediatricians to screen new dads for post-natal parental depression, a condition most commonly associated with new moms. That’s a good step. But the fact that it took so long for the recommendation to be put in place is indicative of a bigger problem: The lack of attention, funding, and research directed towards the health risks that can affect new fathers, and by extension, their entire families.
Dads uniquely impact their kids’ development
Evidence (pdf) shows that engaged fathers have a positive impact their kids’ social, behavioral, psychological and cognitive development. Dads who are highly involved with their kids have been shown to have children with better cognitive competence; increased social skills and capacity for empathy; better self-control and self-esteem; better interactions with siblings; and better grades and academic adjustment.
[For more on this story by Annabelle Timsit, go to https://qz.com/1347237/new-fat...rtum-depression-too/]
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