A study of more than 5,000 Finnish parent-adolescent pairs found that good parental mental health was associated with increased physical activity and decreased digital media use in children aged 11. These associations were still present at 14 years of age. The paper was published in mental health and physical activity.
In recent decades, there has been a noticeable increase in overweight and obesity among children and adolescents. At present, these represent major global health challenges. Additionally, childhood overweight tends to persist into adulthood, increasing the risk of health problems such as cardiovascular disease and metabolic disorders. Reduced physical activity and prolonged sitting while using digital media are thought to be important factors contributing to the obesity epidemic among young people.
Estimates suggest that around 80% of adolescents aged 11 to 17 worldwide do not meet recommended levels of physical activity. The use of digital media has also increased significantly in recent decades. Research shows that once these habits are formed, they tend to persist into adulthood.
One of the factors that potentially influences children’s health behaviors is the mental health of their parents. Parents suffering from depression may have a hard time establishing healthy habits for themselves and their children regarding physical activity and digital media use. Previous research suggests that maternal stress and depression may be associated with lower physical activity, increased sedentary behavior, unhealthy diets, and increased risk of obesity in children, but existing evidence is limited and mixed.
Study author Lauri Hietajärvi and his colleagues wanted to investigate how parents’ mental health influences adolescent behavior and health outcomes. Researchers sought to identify the mental health profile of parents of 11-year-old children and investigate whether it was associated with children’s physical activity levels, digital media use, and BMI.
These authors analyzed data from the Finnish Teenage Health Study. This is a study of Finnish school-age adolescents, including 10,785 adolescents aged 9 to 12 years and 6,046 parents. The analyzes presented in this study included 5,839 parent-adolescent dyads. The average age of parents at the start of the study was 42 years. 89% of the parents were mothers, and 51% of the participating adolescents were girls.
The study authors used data on parental mental health (based on the Beck Depression Inventory Short Form, Consistency Scale, and RAND-36 Mental Component Summary of Health-Related Quality of Life) and data on participating youth’s BMI, leisure-time physical activity, and sedentary digital media use.
The participants reported that, on average, they engaged in about 6.5 to 7.3 hours of physical activity per week and used digital media for about 1.6 to 1.8 hours per day on weekdays and about 2.4 to 2.9 hours per day on weekends. 14-15% of adolescents were overweight.
Further analysis revealed that good parental mental health was associated with higher levels of physical activity and less sedentary digital media use in children aged 11 years. These associations were still present when youth reached 14 years of age.
Examining specific aspects of parental mental health, we found that greater parental depressive symptoms were associated with less physical activity in children, and higher parental sense of coherence was associated with less digital media use. Parental mental health was not associated with children’s BMI.
“Improved parental mental well-being was associated with increased leisure-time physical activity and decreased sedentary digital media use in adolescents during both early and middle adolescence, suggesting that parental well-being may influence adolescent health behaviors and warrants further investigation. These findings highlight the potential value of addressing parental mental well-being in strategies aimed at promoting healthier lifestyles in young people,” the study authors concluded.
This study reveals a link between parents’ mental health and their adolescent children’s behavioral habits. However, note that the study design does not allow definitive causal inferences to be drawn from the results. Additionally, this study was conducted in Finland, and results may vary in other countries and cultures.
The paper, “Cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between parental mental health and adolescent physical activity, sedentary digital media use, and BMI”, was authored by Lauri Hietajärvi, Erika Maksniemi, Jari Lahti, Kirsti Lonka, Heli Viljakainen, and Elina Engberg.
