Abstract
The level of nutritional health of children and adolescents is an important indicator of social development, and grandparents, as common co-caregivers, may have a considerable impact on the health level of their grandchildren. In this paper, we investigated the effects of grandparents’ coresidence on children’s and adolescents’ nutritional health levels using the CHNS (China Health and Nutrition Survey) database using the PSM (Propensity Score Matching) method’ and identified heterogeneity in the effects of grandparents’ coresidence by PSM grouping in terms of urban and rural areas, age, and the mothers’ education level. It was found that grandparents’ coresidence is beneficial for children’s and adolescents’ health to a certain extent. Overfeeding and spoil that many people worried when grandparents involved in childcare did not happen in our samples. Moreover, grandparents’ coresidence had a more significant effect on the health level of children and adolescents in rural areas at a younger age and with a lower level of maternal education. Government and families should put more effort into equipping caregivers with knowledge on how to raise their grandchildren better.
Highlights
The level of nutritional health of children and adolescents is an important indicator of social development, and grandparents, as common co-caregivers, may have a considerable impact on the health level of their grandchildren
In order to detect differences in the effect of grandparents’ coresidence on children’s and adolescents’ health levels in different situations, propensity score matching (PSM) grouping was used to divide the total sample into two subsamples with subgroup variables such as whether they were located in rural areas before grouping them for PSM again, the PSM results were compared for each subsample
In terms of sample characteristics, the male and female samples are more evenly split, each household have an average of 1–2 children, 65.6% of households use tap water or bottled water as drinking water, about 1.8% of the sample have divorced or widowed parents, and the average body mass index (BMI) of mothers is 22.5
Summary
The level of children’s and adolescents’ nutritional health, as an essential indicator of the country’s comprehensive development level and health status, has been one of the major concerns of research in the field of food nutrition and health and the field of rural human capital in recent years. 0–5 years in their daily lives and the daily educator of the family is firstly mothers, followed by the grandparents [10] In rural areas, it is more common for left-behind children to be cared for by their grandparents, and the physical development and nutrition levels of non-left-behind children may be higher than the level of left-behind children [11]. This paper examines the impact of grandparents’ coresidence on children’s and adolescents’ health and well-being from the perspective of grandparents’ coresidence, which can deepen the knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of intergenerational care, a common phenomenon at home and abroad, extend the research perspectives in the field of rural human capital and expand the content of empirical studies and provide references for micro-families to adjust their child care practices, as well as provide a basis and inspiration for the formulation of public service policies related to rural human capital
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