Do you want to know the secret to living longer? Of course you do, we all do. A group of researchers think they have found the answer. And the answer is to have fewer children. According to the results of a recent study it was found that the more children a couple had, the worse their health was and the more likely they were to die at an early age. The researchers from the University of Utah looked at couples residing in Utah between 1860 and 1985. The couples bore a total of 174,000 children.
The researchers found that among the couples studied had an average of 8 children each, with a range of from 1 to fourteen or more kids. According to the data, the more kids a couple had, the higher the risk of early death. The data for women was even worse. Women tended to have worse health and higher occurences of death because of the added physical costs of bearing the children. The mortality risk of the fathers in the study increased the more children they had but never exceeded that of the mothers. Mothers were also more likely than fathers to die after the last child was born. 1,414 women died within a year of the last child’s birth. Another 988 died by the time the child was five.
Perhaps the stress of raising so many kids is what did the parents in. I don’t know and although it’s an interesting study, I am not sure if I totally buy it. I’m of the school of thought that the day we are born the date of our death is determined and I don’t think having one or 15 kids will change that date. I can see where having a lot of kids could put a parent in poor health, especially the mother. Sometimes we tend to neglect our health for the sake of our kids but I think in most cases we seek medical attention before any issues becomes life-threatening. If the results of the study are true, then I guess as a parent with one child, I can look forward to a long lifespan.
See also:
New Study Finds Divorced Moms Have More Illnesses
No Sick Days For Single Parents