It's OK to not want kids. It's OK if you don't want to be a parent, and there's nothing wrong with you if that's the case. It's also OK to not know yet whether you want to have kids. One thing's for sure though: Feeling pressured and obsessing over what everyone else wants isn't going to help you make your decision.
Research shows that not having kids can raise the risk of certain health issues, like breast cancer. However, having kids can also raise the risk of cardiovascular disease for some women, and in others it can lead to chronic pain.
The decision to have children is personal, and should not be taken lightly. So many people feel like they have to have kids because “it's just what you do.” There is always the chance that you will regret not having children. Having children, just in case, is a lot of work and responsibility.
It's completely normal that some people, both men and women, won't desire children in their lifetime, Ambardar says. Even if this life choice is still viewed as unconventional in society, it's important that people who are contemplating a child-free life avoid conforming just to fit in.
Not having children also comes with significant positive health benefits. A 116-year study by the American Journal of Human Biology found the following trends. Longer lifespan. Women with children lost an incredible 95 weeks of life per child carried.
Being childless can be a personal choice or the fate of infertility. While it does not mean you dislike children, it does allow for more time to invest in other things. Regardless of the reason you do not have children, you can be happy, as life without children can be very rewarding and fulfilling.
The major disadvantages are lack of companionship/being alone/loneliness, lack of support and care when older, and missing the experience of parenthood.
MSU study confirms: 1 in 5 adults don't want children — and they don't regret it later. Last summer, researchers at Michigan State University reported that one in five Michigan adults, or about 1.7 million people, don't want children and therefore are child-free.
Our estimate of the number of childfree people is much higher than past national studies, which placed the percentage between 2% and 9%. This likely happened because our measurement focuses on a person's desire to have children, not their ability.
Childless couples tend to develop "strong social relationships such as with friends and family, including nieces and nephews," she says. And maintaining strong social connections "is important for aging across the board," she notes.
Seek emotional support.
Mental health professionals. Find a therapist or counselor whom you feel comfortable with if you feel that you are experiencing obstacles to overcoming uncomfortable emotions. Support groups. Search online and in your local newspapers for support groups for the involuntarily childless.
Essentially, the evidence we have suggests that having children can make you happier. It also can make you feel unhappy, or constantly stressed, or anxious, and so on. Overall, it seems like having children makes your emotional experiences more intense than if you don't have them.
Research shows that there is a “happiness bump” that parents experience right after a baby is born. But that tends to dissipate over the course of a year, Glass says. After that point in time, the levels of happiness of parents and non-parents gradually diverge, with non-parents generally growing happier over time.
The risks of miscarriage and stillbirth are higher in people who are older than 35. Also, multiple pregnancy is more common when you are older. As the ovaries age, they are more likely to release more than one egg each month.
Young adults are overwhelmingly deciding not to have children as a result of the high cost of living, according to exclusive research commissioned by Newsweek.
Just the two of us: 1 in 4 couples opt to never have kids — and are just as happy. EAST LANSING, Mich. — Parenthood is typically the next step in a relationship after making a commitment to that special someone.
Voluntary childlessness statistics reveal that 22% of childless women have a master's degree. 54% of poll respondents think parents should go on vacation without their kids on special occasions. What percentage of American couples are childless? A staggering 57% of American households are child-free.
In the first year, childless couples were more than three times as likely to get divorced as couples who had a baby. After that, the 'divorce risk' curve flattened out, and after 12 years the researchers could no longer see a significant difference between couples who had babies and those who did not.
After age 35, there's a higher risk of pregnancy-related complications that might lead to a C-section delivery. The risk of chromosomal conditions is higher. Babies born to older mothers have a higher risk of certain chromosomal conditions, such as Down syndrome. The risk of pregnancy loss is higher.
Left-behind children have a lower cognitive test score and academic test score, and they are also less likely to attend a college. In particular, a mother's absence seems to have persistent negative effects on children's development.