DaddiLife
  • Home
  • Family
    • Modern Fatherhood
    • Trying
    • Expecting
    • New Dad
    • Stay At Home Dad
    • Separation
    • Single Dads
    • Step Dads
  • Things To Do
    • Kids at Home
    • Newborn
    • Toddler
    • 5 – 10
    • 10+
  • Health
    • Dad Jokes
    • Fitness
    • Family Meal Recipes
    • Safety
    • Wellness
  • Lifestyle
    • Work / Life Balance
    • Money
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Gear
  • Book Squad
  • Reviews
    • Gift Ideas
    • Family Fun
    • Toys
  • Dads at Work
    • Guides for Dads at Work
    • Case Studies
    • Q&A
    • Mentoring Programme
  • Join
  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Write With Us
  • Home
  • Family
    • Modern Fatherhood
    • Trying
    • Expecting
    • New Dad
    • Stay At Home Dad
    • Separation
    • Single Dads
    • Step Dads
  • Things To Do
    • Kids at Home
    • Newborn
    • Toddler
    • 5 – 10
    • 10+
  • Health
    • Dad Jokes
    • Fitness
    • Family Meal Recipes
    • Safety
    • Wellness
  • Lifestyle
    • Work / Life Balance
    • Money
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Gear
  • Book Squad
  • Reviews
    • Gift Ideas
    • Family Fun
    • Toys
  • Dads at Work
    • Guides for Dads at Work
    • Case Studies
    • Q&A
    • Mentoring Programme
  • Join

DaddiLife

The parenting website for dads

New Dad

Stressed Dads Pass Stress to their Children

written by Hugh Wilson 13th November 2018
stress

Dads pass on traits to their children in ways science is only beginning to understand.

For many years scientists have known that conditions endured by dads can be passed to their children in the form of increased susceptibility to disease. Statistics from famine-ravaged Europe after the First World War revealed a generation of children with an increased vulnerability to conditions like obesity and diabetes. All of that seemed to stem directly from their fathers’ unhappy experiences.

What we didn’t know was the mechanism behind that association, but now researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine are starting to fill in the gaps. And their conclusions go further. It appears that stressed out dads can pass stress on to their children. Dads pass on susceptibility to mental as well as physical illness.

 

Stress changes sperm


The experiments have so far been confined to mice, but the results could be significant for humans too.

To cut a long story short, the researchers discovered that when dads experience a period of stress – even months before conception – the brains of their offspring develop differently.

In effect, the stress that dads endure changes their sperm in ways that scientists are only just beginning to understand. That altered sperm affects the brain development of their offspring, potentially leading to a greater susceptibility to conditions like depression and anxiety.

when dads experience a period of stress – even months before conception – the brains of their offspring develop differently

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Just don’t ask what happened 2 seconds after this…😂 #daddilifeoftheday by @dadultlife 🏅

A post shared by DaddiLife (@daddilife) on Aug 9, 2018 at 10:08am PDT

Calmer dads, healthier children


The new research sheds light on how this happens, which has something to do with ‘epigenetic’ changes that take place in instructions held in our DNA code. But the important point is that even quite mildly stressed dads potentially affect the health of their offspring. The same team has previously found that the offspring of male mice that experience chronic periods of mild stress prior to conception cope with stress less effectively.

“Researchers have known for years that stress can increase the risk of mental disorders,” Dr Tracy Bale, said professor of neuroscience at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. “What’s interesting here is that we are finding intergenerational effect.”

Researchers have also known for years that a mother’s environment and lifestyle during pregnancy can affect their developing offspring. What is increasingly clear is that the stresses a dad endures prior to conception can also be passed onto children.

 

Dads’ influence on child development


It’s becoming increasingly clear that dads influence the development of their children in all sorts of ways, good and bad. Here are just a few.

  • According to research collected by the The Fatherhood Project, children who are close to their dads are twice as likely as those who are not to enter college or find stable employment after high school.
  • Those children are also 80% less likely to spend time in jail.
  • And half as likely to experience multiple depression symptoms.
  • Children with involved fathers are more sociable, confident, and more self-controlled than those without involved dads.
  • Research from the University of Michigan found that the mental health of dads influences children’s social skills (e.g. self-control/cooperation). It has a bigger influence in this area than the mental health of mums.
  • A Harvard University study from 2015 found that children benefit more from dads reading bedtime stories than mums, because reading with dad tended to spark more imaginative discussions.
Stressed Dads Pass Stress to their Children was last modified: August 25th, 2021 by Hugh Wilson

Related

child developmentconceptionstresstrying
0 comment
0
Facebook Twitter Google + Pinterest
Hugh Wilson

voting
previous post
Having daughters makes dads vote differently
advent
next post
The DaddiLife debate: how much should you spend on an advent calendar?

You may also like

Dads bathing kids is good for everyone

23rd March 2018

Should Parenthood Be This Easy?

28th September 2018

Parent is born – a letter to...

8th March 2018

How to Choose Your Daughter’s Name

2nd February 2021

Shared Paternity Leave: 4 years on

8th April 2019

First Time Dads Podcast | DaddiLife’s Review

15th January 2018

Reflections on fatherhood – 10 things I’d...

11th October 2017

Why do new dads get depressed?

19th March 2019

DaddiLifeForce – The Baby Night Feed

13th April 2017

Becoming a Father changes men in so...

5th June 2018

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Audiobooks for Dads

Get the latest dad news




Popular Things to Do

  • A Parent’s Guide To Tuff Trays

  • DaddiLifeForce – The Power of Lego

  • DaddiLifeForce – New Years 2017

  • DaddiLifeForce – Chinese New Year

  • Tuff Tray Ideas: Some great ideas for creative tuff trays

Writers Community

Write for DaddiLife


  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Youtube

© 2017 - DaddiLife. All Right Reserved. DaddiLife is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.


Back To Top