Many people can agree on the importance of keeping family first. In the natural stresses of life, however, it is so easy to forget to keep in contact with the very people who helped create your family – your grandparents and your parents. Having a good relationship and being present in each other’s life can improve the mental and physical health of everyone involved.
Why It’s Good To Spend Quality Time With Your Parents (And Grandparents)
A study supports that death and disability are not just biological but can also be caused by psychological factors such as loneliness. Loneliness does not necessarily mean that you have no one. Loneliness can be a lack of meaningful connection with people that you love and care about.
According to the study, feeling left out and isolated and lacking companionship can make it difficult to perform every day tasks and may even decrease mobility. Participants who were 60 years old and older were more at risk of experiencing health decline and death if they felt lonely. [6]
What’s more, researchers at the Unversity of California conducted a study of 1600 participants and found that the effect of loneliness could have a more significant impact on life expectancy even more than other aspects of health.
Plus…Spending Time With Your Mom Is Good For You Too!
Two studies performed with 5th and 6th graders showed that children who had a secure relationship with their mother were more accepted by their peers, had more reciprocated friendships, were more responsive and less critical in conversation, and felt less lonely than children who had an insecure relationship with their mother. [4]
Having a positive relationship with your parent at all times is not realistic, but having good moments and positive interactions is very important. A study on the relationship of parents with their adult children reported that a negative experience can lead to a stressful encounter, stressful thoughts, and irritation.
However, if everyone involved shares a pleasant experience on the same day, then that positivity can alleviate the negativity of the previous experience. A pleasant experience can be as simple as having an enjoyable interaction or sharing a laugh. [3]
Keep Reading: The More You Hug Your Kids, This Is What Happens To Their Brains
Sources
- [1] Albernaz, A. (December 14, 2015). Study: Close grandparent-grandchild relationships have healthy benefits.
- [2] American Sociological Association. (August 12, 2013). Strong grandparent-adult grandchild relationships reduce depression for both.
- [3] Fingerman, K. L., Kim, K., Birditt, K. S., & Zarit, S. H. (2016). The Ties That Bind: Midlife Parents’ Daily Experiences With Grown Children. Journal of Marriage and Family, 78(2), 431–450.
- [4] Kerns, K. A., Klepac, L., & Cole, A. K. (1996). Peer relationships and preadolescents’ perceptions of security in the child-mother relationship. Developmental Psychology, 32(3), 457-466.
- [5] Moorman, S. M. & Stokes, J. E. (2016). Solidarity in the Grandparent–Adult Grandchild Relationship and Trajectories of Depressive Symptoms. Gerontologist, 56(3), 408-420.
- [6] Perissinotto, C. M., Stijacic Cenzer, I., & Covinsky, K. E. (2012). Loneliness in Older Persons: A Predictor of Functional Decline and Death. Archives of Internal Medicine. 172(14), 1078-1084.