Unemployment affects children's height

Unemployment of parents affects the height of children

01/04/2012

Several studies point to far-reaching health consequences of unemployment. What is new is that the unemployment of the parents also affects the height of the children. This was discovered by scientists of the University of Tübingen during a study.

The long-term unemployed in particular suffer from the physical and psychological consequences of being unemployed. This has been shown in the past numerous evaluations of health statistics of the health insurance companies. Lasting unemployment also affects the physical condition of children in unemployment families. According to an evaluation by researchers at the University of Tübingen, children of the unemployed are generally smaller than their peers, according to the study's key message.

In cooperation with the state health department Brandenburg, the economic historian Prof. Jörg Baten has evaluated the data of over 250,000 children from the eastern German state of Brandenburg. The data included first-graders in Brandenburg. The research team focused on physical size, age and gender. It then compared the socioeconomic data such as the parents' professional status, education, and the number of children and adults in the household. The analysis took into account children over the period from 1994 to 2005.

Children on average 1.5 centimeters smaller
Surprisingly, the evaluations showed that children in first grade, whose father or mother had no job, were on average 1.5 centimeters smaller than comparatively children whose parents were not unemployed. „It is amazing that unemployment in such well-nourished and socially cushioned countries is having such a big impact“, said the historian on Tuesday presenting the results. The researchers in Tübingen suggest that it is not the low income of the parents that plays a major role, but rather the psychological stress and frustration of the unemployed parents. It could be that due to the psychological situation, parents neglect the interests of the children, so the presumption of the professor. "The development should be similar in the West."

As a further influencing factor, the researcher mentions the educational level of mothers in particular. Because despite the progress of emancipation, especially the mothers take care of the education, nutrition and care of the children. Children in the first year of school, whose mothers did not reach the middle maturity (secondary school), are on average 11 millimeters smaller than the offspring of women with university entrance qualification (Abitur), says the study. Other research suggests that parents with higher education value more value on a healthy, wholesome diet and take greater care of the children's health care. Therefore, the assumption is that children in higher levels of education develop better and, apart from genetic factors, also grow on average.

Single parenting has no relevance
If, on the other hand, children grow up with single mothers or fathers, this circumstance does not affect the height of the child. According to study results, it is positive if three or more adults live in the same household. A conceivable constellation is when grandma or grandpa live in the family and also take care of the well-being of the children.

If children are a bit smaller than their peers, that does not mean that the parents are unemployed or less educated, the university professor emphasized. The genetic preferences transmitted by the father and mother are major factors in the later size of the child. However, scientists can use the children's sizes to identify an indicator of societal and economic developments in a region or state.

The income situation does not matter?
Sebastian Bertram of the initiative „gegen-hartz.de“ criticized the „only insufficient fixation of the study on the household income factor“. Children in so-called Hartz IV households are about 2.57 euros (0-14 years) per day available according to the rule requirement regulation. According to a study by the Research Institute for Child Nutrition in Dortmund, the actual food requirement for a child under the age of 14 is at least € 5.71 per day. „Only then is a reasonably healthy diet guaranteed.“, so Bertram. In the opinion of the expert therefore exists „very well also a connection between malnutrition and physical development of the child“. (Ag)

Also read:
Hartz IV makes people permanently ill
Hartz IV sanctions against pregnant women rightly?
DGB Study: Unemployment makes you sick
Study: Fear of Hartz IV makes you sick

Image: Steffi fur