mother’s day is around the corner, a time whenever we look to the mothers and mother-figures in our lives to show our appreciation for them. with motherhood comes many ups and downs, but there’s actually a lot of proven benefits to motherhood that are backed by research .
moms are used to getting things done, especially when you have little ones around. one study from the federal reserve bank of st. louis discovered that mothers were more productive than those without children . in fact, those with at least two kids were the most productive overall. to measure, researchers analyzed the amount of research by over 10,000 academic economists with careers spanning over 30 years. despite the study only looking at this profession, it still demonstrated that working moms know how to get things done.
believe it or not, studies show that motherhood helps women experience improved memory. researchers from carlos albizu university in miami gave mothers a visuospatial memory (which is the ability to identify and recall information about your surroundings) test. they discovered that mothers performed better than those without children. the researchers speculated that mothers have improved visuospatial memory to be able to quickly scan their surroundings for any possible dangers.
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believe it or not, having kids can help women live longer — particularly if you have them later in life. one 2016 study by scientists at the university of california san diego school of medicine showed that women who had children after the age of 25 had an increased 11 per cent change of living to be 90 years old.
a 30 year us study found that mothers who breastfeed for six months can reduce their risk for developing type 2 diabetes by 47 per cent. those who breastfeed in even less time still decrease their chances by 23 per cent. researchers in the study said that they believed that the hormones involved in lactation could have an influence on the cells that impact insulin and blood sugar levels.
according to one study from oxford university, a woman’s risk for ovarian cancers decreases with every child she has. the researchers believe that it’s because pregnancy prevents ovulation for nine months (which could increase the risk for ovarian cancer). other studies show a connection between breastfeeding and pregnancy with a reduced risk of breast cancer.