The Relationship between Parenting Methods and Children's Health

The Relationship between Parenting Methods and children's Health

There has been little research conducted on the relationship between parenting methods and the physical and mental health of children. Recently, a study conducted abroad surveyed a group of children under the age of 5, examining their lifestyle and parenting methods while also assessing their general health status, chronic diseases, behavioral performance, dental health, recent health conditions, and the occurrence of accidents and injuries. The study concluded that a healthy lifestyle, which includes engaging in physical activities, limiting TV and computer gaming time, and consuming an appropriate amount of vegetables, fruits, and snacks, can promote children's physical and mental well-being. Parents' overall parenting skills were found to be related to their children's poorer health outcomes, especially when there were severe conflicts between parents and children, leading to adverse social and emotional outcomes for the children. Inadequate parental supervision was associated with children's overall poor health, chronic illnesses, accidents, and behavioral problems.

The time children spent engaging in activities with their mothers at home was associated with better behavior and adherence to rules. Pre-school children raised by mothers who genuinely cared for them, providing them with good cognitive stimulation, received positive evaluations from teachers regarding their language abilities when they reached school age. More importantly, adopting a supportive and less authoritarian parenting style led to higher language and intelligence scores in children. Parent-child interactions have a multifaceted impact on children's growth and development, and focusing on children, displaying agility in response, and using appropriate parenting techniques are closely related to the child's good self-esteem, academic performance, cognitive development, and fewer behavioral problems. Research findings indicate that for kindergarten-age children, with appropriate management and supervision of their diet and exercise by parents, their diet can be arranged reasonably to achieve nutritional balance; otherwise, a balanced diet may not be attainable.

These research results suggest that parenting methods have an impact on children's physical health and behavior. This explains why families with similar socioeconomic status but different parenting approaches can have varying health outcomes for their children.

The period of 6 to 12 years, during which children are in school, is the optimal time for their health and recovery even if they contract certain illnesses. During this period, children are receptive to new things, making it an opportune time for health education. Teaching them disease prevention knowledge, fostering good hygiene habits, and instilling an understanding that a healthy childhood leads to a healthy adulthood.

In contrast, children living in families where unfortunate events frequently occur and where parental caregiving abilities are limited tend to have poorer health and more behavioral problems. The parent-child relationship in such families may lack warmth. Children with aggressive behavior tend to have parents who also exhibit characteristics of being punitive and critical, resulting in more intentional and stubborn misbehavior. Moreover, emotional instability and mental stress in either the mother or father are associated with more behavioral and emotional problems in children. However, from a psychopathological perspective, a mother's influence is more significant than that of the father. Although maternal depression may not have significant effects on a child's cognitive development, if it persists for a long time, it can have an impact on the child's long-term prognosis. The parenting of school-age children with parents experiencing mental stress is associated with lower scores in social skills and a tendency towards introversion or extroversion. Such children may display aggressive or anxious behaviors during preschool and have difficulty maintaining good relationships with other children.

Parenting techniques differ among individuals, influenced by their positive personality traits and cultural differences. Parents who possess good parenting skills can be considered good parents. Here, "good" means that the parenting techniques meet the minimum requirements for the child's healthy growth and development. A good mother's caregiving methods will fully meet the needs of the infant when the child is born. However, as time goes on, her caregiving abilities may gradually fall short of meeting the child's growing needs, making it challenging to cope with the frustrations encountered. Additionally, parents' personal medical history, such as emotional attachment and mental disorders, inevitably affects their caregiving abilities and influences the child's healthy development. Therefore, measures to improve parents' parenting skills are beneficial for the physical and mental health of children, especially in families where unfortunate events frequently occur. It is essential for parents to receive guidance on child-rearing techniques through training. By imparting knowledge about child growth and psychological development, their parenting techniques can be improved, leading to higher levels of children's health and cognitive abilities, improving the prognosis for children who are developmentally delayed or have birth defects, and cultivating positive behaviors in children.