Kids stay happier if grandparents are involved in their upbringing
4 Jun 2008, 1503 Hrs

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London, June 4 (ANI): If you want your offspring to grow up happy, then involve your mom and dad in their lives, says a new study.

Researchers at Oxford University and the Institute of Education, London, have found that grandparents can help kids because they often have more time to spend with them than working parents - and they are good at solving their problems as well as discussing their future plans.

They also found that grandparents could help young children stay calm during crises such as divorce.

The findings are based on a survey of more than 1,500 children.

During the study, researchers found that one grandmother in three regularly looked after a grandchild, while 40 per cent helped out occasionally.

However, researchers believe that more grandparents should become involved in care to improve their grandchildren's well-being, and that the Government should do more to recognise their importance to society.

"What was especially interesting was the link between involved grandparents and adolescent well-being. Closeness was not enough: only grandparents who got stuck in had this positive impact on their grandchildren," the Telegraph quoted Prof Ann Buchanan, the director of the Centre for Research into Parenting and Children in the Department of Social Policy and Social Work at Oxford University, as saying. The study's findings will be discussed at the annual meeting of the Grandparents' Association in London on Wednesday. (ANI)