Grandparents Are Safest Caregivers
Categories: Relatives, Health & safety, Resources
Not able to shell out thousands of dollars to pay for a daycare service? Feeling guilty about getting your kids' grandparents to match them while you're at work? Well, now you can make them feel guilty should they say no, given the results of a new study published in Pediatrics, the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.It turns out that having grandparents take care of kids cuts their risk of childhood injury in half. In fact, kids are safer with grandparents than in daycare or even with a stay-at-home mom. "Recent growth in the number of grandparents providing childcare has some observers concerned they don't adhere to modern safety practices," says Dr. David Bishai who led the research team. "To the contrary, this research tells us not only is there no evidence to support this assumption, but families that choose grandparents to care for their children experience fewer child injuries."
Of course, it sounds good on paper, but did these researchers take into account the impact of grandmothers giving kids a week's worth of cookies and ice cream with their lunch everyday? I didn't think so.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jenni 12-01-2008 @ 3:56PM
Seriously, are we surprised? "Daycares" have one adult to 12 children (8 if you're in a quality place). You try chasing children in all those directions without injury!
Parents also are going a hundred different directions.
Grandparents have all the time in the world with nothing to do but devote 100% of their time with that one or two child(ren)
It's not a bad thing. And, those grandparents who actually take care of their granchildren day after day don't give them the weeks worth of candy, that only happens if they see them one time or less a week.
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Uly 12-01-2008 @ 10:22PM
It's been known for decades that impoverished children fare much better if they have a grandmother in close contact than if they don't. Why is this a surprise?
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penny 12-02-2008 @ 4:43PM
I had to laugh, grandparents have nothing to do but devote 100% of their time to their grandkids! In my family both sets of grandparents are still working and no I didn't have my kids at 12. I don't know any of my friends who have young kids who's parents are in retirement. While I understand people affliction with day cares it's just a fact that people are spending a longer time in the work field and you can't expect anyone to stay home a "work" for free or for pennies because they happen to have given birth to the parent of their grandchildren. I would be thrilled if my parents could take care of my kids, but it's not an option.
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