Frequent House Moves Take Lifetime Toll on Kids’ Mental Health

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Kids whose families frequently move have a significantly higher risk of depression later in life, a new study warns.

Children who move once between the ages of 10 and 15 are 41% more likely to be diagnosed with depression in adulthood, compared with those whose families don’t move, researchers found.

And kids who move twice or more at that age are 61% more likely to develop depression, results.

By comparison, kids who live in a poor neighborhood are 10% more likely to develop depression as adults, researchers noted.

The results suggest that a settled home environment during childhood is crucial to protecting children against future mental health problems.

“We know there are a number of factors which lead to a person being diagnosed with a mental illness,” said lead researcher Clive Sabel, a professor with the University of Plymouth in the U.K. “However, this is the first evidence to suggest that moving to a new neighborhood during childhood is among them, and we believe the numbers we are seeing could be the tip of the iceberg.”

“During those formative years, children are building their social networks through school, sports groups or other activities,” Sabel said in a university news release. “Each time they have to adapt to something new it can be disruptive, so we potentially need to find new ways to help people overcome those challenges.”

For the study, researchers tracked nearly 1.1 million people born in Denmark between 1981 and 2001, comparing their changes of address while young to any subsequent mood disorders or mental health problems.

Researchers said they’d expect similar outcomes in other parts of the world, particularly among groups of children like foster kids and Army brats.

The new study was published July 17 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.

“Young people in care often face multiple moves and are potentially being placed under additional pressures. Then there are military children, who move regularly, depending on where their parents are stationed,” Sabel said. “This study would suggest they, and other such children, may need additional assistance to prevent the development of mental illness in later life.”

More information

Mental Health America has more about the effect of home life on mental health.

SOURCE: University of Plymouth, news release, July 17, 2024

Source: HealthDay

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