sa国际传媒

Young children whose fathers are involved in their upbringing often have a better outcome in life.

In fact, studies show that babies whose dads are “hands on” and “fun” actually learn faster.聽But in many countries and cultures, raising children is still looked on as being a mother鈥檚 job.

鈥淩esearch suggests that when children positively interact with their fathers, they have better psychological health, self-esteem and life-satisfaction in the long term,” said聽Eduardo Garcia Rolland, UNICEF Early Childhood Development Specialist.

“In countries across the world, many families are aware of the importance of shared responsibilities while raising young children.

鈥淏ut there is still much work to be done to overcome persistent academic, cultural and social biases and stereotypes against men. Those biases marginalise fathers and are an obstacle for children鈥檚 development.鈥�

The first five years of a child鈥檚 life are the most critical to their future development.聽sa国际传媒 has been campaigning for countries and donors to invest in early childhood development.

Two studies – both published in the journal Infant Mental Health – have pointed to the benefits of a father’s involvement in their child’s early development.

The most recent came from聽Curtin University鈥檚 School of Nursing in Western Australia. It found that a father’s bond with a baby can have a greater influence on the wellbeing of the whole family than the mother’s.

Asked about the findings, Caroline Zanetti – perinatal, infant and child psychiatrist at the Elizabeth Clinic –聽: 鈥淓verybody is aware of the importance of the mother as a primary caregiver – but it鈥檚 also important to know a father can make a real difference to a baby鈥檚 development.

鈥淏etween the two, the parents make a healthy whole for their children.鈥�

In the United Kingdom, a team discovered the scientific benefits of men being heavily involved in the early years.

Researchers聽from Imperial College London, King’s College London and Oxford University said their findings show that聽.

The study, published earlier this year, looked at how fathers interacted with their babies at three months and measured the infants鈥� cognitive development more than a year later.

They said the signs could be seen from as early as three months.聽The study said there was “compelling support” for the importance of a mother’s impact on a child’s development – but now there was more interest in father-infant interactions.

Professor Paul Ramchandani, from the Department of Medicine at Imperial, who led the research, said: 鈥淓ven as early as three months, these father-child interactions can positively predict cognitive development almost two years later, so there’s something probably quite meaningful for later development – and that really hasn’t been shown much before.鈥�

In another study, fathers’ increased involvement with caregiving was linked to a decreased likelihood that their children would become obese between the ages of two and four, Science Daily reported.

“There is growing evidence of the importance of fathers’ involvement in raising children in other areas of children’s development – and our study suggests that there may be benefits to child health as well,” said Dr Michelle Wong, lead author of the Obesity study.聽

In the summer, UNICEF launched its聽聽to celebrate fatherhood as part of its early childhood development campaign.

UNICEF’s Eduardo Rolland said:聽鈥淭here are many benefits for the children – but also spouses, the couples themselves and the whole family when male figures are highly involved in the function of parenting.聽

“There is a lack of understanding of the benefits of co-parenting and the importance of fathers鈥� role in the development of children鈥檚 brains.

鈥淲e hope this campaign will help to see greater engagement from fathers, and inspire governments, businesses and communities to breakdown societal, cultural and employment barriers that currently prevent fathers from playing a more active role in their children’s development.鈥�

The importance of having a positive male influence in a young child鈥檚 life is being embraced by many developing countries.

鈥淭here are traditional biases against fathers鈥� involvement in child care that are still present in different cultures and households in every country,” said Rolland.

“Men were traditionally excluded from the small and big tasks such as feeding, playing, washing, reading and talking that contribute to a child鈥檚 ability to build positive attachments with adults.”

During a sa国际传媒 series on early childhood caregivers, we spoke to two fathers in Kenya.

Peter Mwangi, who has three children, said: “Men need to be more involved in their children鈥檚 lives.聽Seminars need to be held for fathers to be taught how best to raise children and be more involved.”

Peter Mayienga said: “Most of the time you will find the mother is the one bringing the children. Men say they are busy.聽

“However, I would like to tell men that they need to work hand in hand with their partners.”聽