What's with the constant scaremongering?

Recent research has emerged which suggests that a happy childhood will lead to a healthier cardiovascular system in adulthood. Yes, you read that right - mums now have something else to feel worry and feel guilty about.

The study, which was carried out in Finland, basically suggests that if you grew up in a perfect home, experienced a perfect childhood and went to sleep on a satin pillow every night, there’s a good chance you might be able to dodge those pesky things known as ‘genes.’

Of course, the study- published in the American Heart Association journal, Circulation- contains some indisputable facts. Being exposed to healthy dietary choices as a child is likely to have a positive influence on your nutrition plan as an adult, that’s a no-brainer. But what does that mean for the rest of us?

I’m talking about those of us who were fed sausage, beans and chips on a regular basis as children, but experienced an epiphany in our twenties when we realised we quite liked the taste of hummus and salad. Is it too late for us? *sigh.*

And what about those of us who were partial to both a toddler and teen tantrum when we were growing up? Are our tickers really going to suffer in later years because we slammed more than one door over the course of our adolescence? Well, according to this research, yes.

The study suggested that children who maintained their temper and had good aggression and impulse control were in the running for a problem-free cardiac system as an adult. How much are you regretting the week-long meltdown you had over Take That’s original break-up now?

And what about our own children? Not only should we be concerned about actual conditions running in the family like Aunt Claire’s dementia and Grandad Bob’s Parkinsons, but now we must fear that we’re setting our children up for ill-health because our family is less-than-perfect, our children have yet to appreciate the joy of avocado and our teenage daughter cries more than Gwyneth Paltrow winning an Oscar.

 

We also need to feel even more guilty about those overtired moments when we snap at our kids - not only are we breaking all the parenting book rules, we're also destroying their health.