After highlighting both mothers and fathers in earlier reports, FCHIP now turns to the parents of parents: grandparents. As we prepare to celebrate Grandparents Day and Do Something Grand on September 8th, the “new image of the aged” reflected in engagement with grandchildren shows that our involvement and influence in improving the lives of children can be multigenerational and ongoing. As in this year’s previous reports, we highlight images from the Lurie Family Photobook, an ongoing project compiling images of Lurie Children’s families.
Grandparents and Wellbeing
Research from around the world supports the connection between grandparenting and grandparent wellbeing.
China: Caring for grandchildren and emotional closeness with children was associated with decreased depressive symptoms in grandparents.
Italy and England: During the COVID-19 pandemic, grandparents reported decreased depressive symptoms and higher quality of life when able to spend time with their grandchildren, compared with grandparents who had to stop taking care of their grandchildren.
Research also supports the connection between grandparenting and child wellbeing.
Maternal grandparents may be especially valuable in protecting vulnerable children who have experienced a lot of adverse early life experiences, for example, a death in the family, getting seriously sick or injured, or parental separation or divorce. At-risk children with grandmothers who spend more time and energy on them experience improved wellbeing.
In AARP surveys of grandparents conducted in 2018 and 2020,
89% say their relationship with their grandchildren is good for their mental wellbeing.
67% say their grandchildren make them more sociable.
71% say they increased their use of video chat due to COVID-19 precautions.
47% like the idea of group text messaging with their grandchildren.
Social Media
One pathway towards improved grandparent wellbeing is via internet connection. In China, grandparents who use the internet rated their health as better and were less likely to experience depression than grandparents who did not use the internet. In an increasingly digital world, many grandparents are trying new ways to stay connected with their grandchildren.
This media story about a TikTok video features a trend of grandkids surprising their grandparents with sleepovers, showing one way social media can help bring generations together. In the video, grandparents Tony and Pat Sindoni are surprised by 10 of their adult grandchildren showing up for a Christmas Eve sleepover, recreating holiday memories from when they were kids.
Safe Sleep Education for Grandparents
As most grandparents will tell you, their children parent differently than they did. One important area of change in taking care of infants is safe sleep practices. Due to research and advancements in scientific knowledge, the American Academy of Pediatrics states that the safest way to put a baby to sleep is on their back, in their own sleep space like a crib or bassinet, without any pillows or loose blankets.
Because many grandparents take care of their grandchildren, many state Maternal and Child Health (MCH) agencies have created safe sleep education specifically for grandparents.
New Jersey: The New Jersey Department of Health partners with the SIDS Center of New Jersey (SCNJ) at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, to provide safe sleep education across the state. The SCNJ provides education for grandparents and has grandparent-specific resources on their website.
Oklahoma: The Injury Prevention and Safe Sleep Work Groups created a Grandparent Toolkit for grandparents caring for grandchildren. Their Infant Care and Safety Resource includes information not only about safe sleep, but also other topics including nutrition, infant crying, soothing, and safety.
The Custodial Grandparent: Raising Grandchildren
Sleep is not only important for children, but for grandparents themselves. Sleep quality is poorer among grandparents who provide childcare for their grandchildren, so sleep may be an important mechanism by which to improve overall grandparent wellbeing. In the United States, over 2 million children are in kinship care, meaning they are raised by a relative such as a grandparent. Among these custodial grandparents, those with disabilities experienced significant sleep disturbances during COVID compared to grandparents without disabilities.
Some states have developed programs to support grandparents who are raising their grandchildren.
Rhode Island: the Grands Flourish program offers peer-to-peer grandparent support, a resource group, and a case manager dedicated to supporting grandparents raising grandchildren.
West Virginia: the state MCH agency provides support for the Healthy Grandfamilies program led by West Virginia State University (WVSU) Extension Service and the WSVU Department of Social Work. Grandparents in the program attend nine discussion sessions on topics such as health literacy, social media, and navigating the public school system. After the discussion sessions, participants receive three months of follow up services with a social worker.
