Increased health risks of children with single mothers: the impact of socio-economic and environmental factors

Adverse effects of single parenthood on children's health have been reported before. Socio-economic difficulties are discussed as mediating factors. As child health also depends on environmental conditions, we investigated the impact of environmental exposures and socio-economic factors on diff...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of public health 2013-06, Vol.23 (3), p.469-475
Main Authors: Scharte, Marion, Bolte, Gabriele
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Associations
Asthma
Asthma - epidemiology
Boys
Child
Child health
Child Welfare - statistics & numerical data
Child, Preschool
Children
Children & youth
Childrens health
Couples
Cross-Sectional Studies
Environmental conditions
Environmental Exposure - adverse effects
Environmental Factors
Environmental health
Families & family life
Family
Family Health - statistics & numerical data
Female
Females
Germany - epidemiology
Girls
Health
Health policy
Health Problems
Health risk assessment
Health risks
Health Status Disparities
Health Status Indicators
Households
Humans
Income
Logistic Models
Male
Maternal & child health
Mothers
Mothers - education
Mothers - statistics & numerical data
Overweight - epidemiology
Public health
Public health education
Regression analysis
Residence Characteristics
Risk
Risk Factors
Single Mothers
Single Parent - psychology
Single Parent - statistics & numerical data
Single parents
Social Environment
Socioeconomic Factors
Surveys
Surveys and Questionnaires
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Summary:Adverse effects of single parenthood on children's health have been reported before. Socio-economic difficulties are discussed as mediating factors. As child health also depends on environmental conditions, we investigated the impact of environmental exposures and socio-economic factors on differences in health outcomes of children with single mothers vs. couple families. Data on 17,218 pre-school children (47% female) from three cross-sectional surveys conducted during 2004-07 in Germany were analysed. Health and exposure assessment were primarily based on parental report. Effects of socio-economic indicators (maternal education, household income) and environmental factors (traffic load at the place of residence, perceived environmental quality) on associations of four health outcomes (parent-reported health status, asthma, overweight, psychological problems) with single parenthood were determined by logistic regression analyses. Children with single mothers showed an increased risk regarding parent-reported poor health status [boys: odds ratio (OR) 1.39 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.06-1.82), girls: 1.73 (1.28-2.33)], psychological problems [boys: 1.90 (1.38-2.61), girls: 1.58 (1.03-2.42)], overweight [only boys: OR 1.23 (1.01-1.50) and asthma [only girls: OR 1.90 (1.15-3.15)]. Adjusting for socio-economic factors attenuated the strength of the association of family type with child health. Although environmental factors were associated with most health outcomes investigated and children of single mothers were more often exposed, these environmental factors did not alter the differences between children with single mothers and couple families. The increased health risks of children from single-mother families vs. couple families are partly explained by socio-economic factors, but not by the environmental exposures studied.
ISSN:1101-1262
1464-360X
DOI:10.1093/eurpub/cks062