Are Kids of Working Parents Less Healthy?
Reported October 06, 2009
Many working parents already feel plenty of stress and guilt as is. Now there’s a new British study which found that children of working mothers are less likely to eat as healthily or exercise as much as kids of stay-at-home moms.
The UK Millennium Cohort Study looked at the dietary habits and physical activity of more than 12,500 children from ages 9 months to 5. The researchers found that, regardless of ethnicity, maternal education or job level, children whose mothers worked part or full time were less likely to eat fruits or vegetables, and were more likely to drink soda and snack on chips. Moreover, they were more likely to sit in front of the TV or computer for longer periods of times than children of stay-at-home moms.
Still, the research showed that many of the kids, regardless of whether their parents worked, had unhealthy habits to begin with: 37% snacked on potato chips, 41% drank sugary drinks between meals, and 61% watched television or used the computer for at least two hours a day.
“Time constraints may limit parents’ capacity to provide their children with healthy foods and opportunities for physical activity,” said the study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. The research did not say, however, what sort of child-care arrangements the children of working mothers had, such as whether they were at daycare, or being looked after by a nanny or relative. It also didn’t measure the effects of fathers who did or didn’t work.
The researchers stressed that they were not implying that mothers shouldn’t work, but were underlining the need for better policies and programs to support working families, such as better training for caregivers on fitness and nutrition.
Still, the research only adds to the list of worries that many working parents face. According to a new Pew Research Center study, working moms give themselves worse marks as parents than stay-at-home moms. The survey of nearly 2,000 adults found that 43% of stay-at-home moms rated themselves a 9 or 10 as parents, compared to only 33% of working mothers.
We’ve discussed how tough it can be during the busy morning and evening scrambles to prepare wholesome meals for the kids—and make sure they actually eat them when you’re not there to supervise. (No working parent I know, for instance, would ever have time to prepare these adorable, yet healthy, Bento boxes.) Some healthy lunchbox ideas for working parents can be found here and here.
So if you are a working parent, what steps are you taking to ensure your kids get proper nutrition and exercise during the day? And given the Pew research, how would you rate your parenting, from 0-10 (10 being the highest)?