Grandparents take better care of the kids
Categories: Newborns, Babies, Toddlers, Preschoolers, Relatives, Health & safety
If your child care situation involves grandparents, you can rest easy knowing they are in good hands. In fact, according to a new study published in the latest issue of Pediatrics, your children might be safer with their grandparents than they are with you!Contrary to common wisdom that suggests grandparents are too far removed from the realities of child rearing to understand and protect children from injury and harm, the study find that quite the opposite is true. Analyzing data from the National Evaluation of the Healthy Steps for Young Children Program, researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health determined that children are less likely to be injured when in the care of grandma than in other situations. That's right, grandma takes better care of the little ones than organized day care centers, other relatives and even stay at home moms.
The reasons for this aren't clear, but we could speculate for days. Grandma might be less distracted than professional caregivers and even moms. Maybe grandma keeps the kids on a shorter leash and therefore out of harm's way. Whatever the reason, this should be comforting news for the increasing number of families who depend on grandparents to provide regular child care.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Joy 11-05-2008 @ 5:54PM
I feel the opposite of "keeping a shorter leash" than the parents. In fact, I just feel it's a fact of being a little calmer. I'm not as nervous as I was as a parent. I don't keep saying things like "get down, you'll fall" or "you can't pour the milk because you'll spill it." I've let them fall and they get right back up and if you spill milk, it only takes a second to clean it up. I sometimes feel parents today (and mine are included) think their kids are going to die if they fall down or get a cut or scrape. I think when grandma is calmer, kids are calmer. I think nervous parents make nervous kids and I also feel that often times mom or dad do so many things for their kids that the kids can do themselves because it's just easier. Grandparents have the time it takes to let little ones do these things and it makes both happy.
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Derek 11-05-2008 @ 6:29PM
Well, I'm going to have to agree... At least in my situation Grandma keeps a pretty short leash, shes always afraid he is going to fall even when he is just sitting on the floor.
FYI, I have a 10 month old with a severe liver disease (he needs a transplant or he'll die) want to talk about stress!!!?
Anyways, my wife and I are very casual when it comes to letting him do things on his own. If he is on the carpet and sitting or attempting to stand up... if he falls... no big woop.
Thank you Batman for this little quote:
"Bruce why do we fall? to pick ourselves back up."
It migh be a bit much to compare personal responsibility to falling on your a**, but we all have to start somewhere.
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JT 11-05-2008 @ 6:33PM
From what I have seen these days. Parents are more interested in themselves than their kids. My son and daughter-in-law are prime examples. They stick the kids in front of the tv and spend no time with them. If the kids need to go to the doctor either I take them myself or make appointments for the kids and then tell them what time to be there. But if one of them get sick, they go right away. The kids can need something, that is need, like new shoes. But Mama wants a movie, Mom will get that movie, kid will wait. They send them outside to play by themselves, or the little one just walks out the door. If Mom is watching TV or is on the internet, it could be 30 minutes before she moves. She will set and yell to see if they answer her, but it will still take 30 minutes before she moves. My son isn't as bad, he works full time and takes classes part time. But he does go outside with the kids, he does homework with the kids, and he knows if the little one is quiet you better move fast.We don't live in the safest neighborhood.
Jt
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Half Assed Kitchen 11-05-2008 @ 8:10PM
Now, if only I had grandparents who lived within a 1000 mile radius.
Angie (from over at www.HalfAssedKitchen.com)
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music4180 11-06-2008 @ 3:26PM
Ok I'm sure this study refers to grandparents that are not morons. My mother-in-law kept my baby when she was three months old. It lasted three weeks because I found out that she was over-medicating her. She thought everytime she cried that she needed to give her either tylenol or mylicon. It was bad. I suspected she was doing it when my tylenol bottle was empty. So maybe as a group grandparents are better , but there are sittuations when thats not the case.
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RedneckMama0307 11-06-2008 @ 8:45PM
I actually have to disagree...my mother-in-law has watched my daughter quite a bit, and my daughter has swallowed Palm Olive, fallen down the stairs a few times (only about 4 steps each time, but still the fact), and nearly eaten up with bug bites.
I know she means well, but she doesn't keep an eye on my child the way I do.
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