Parent Emigration, Physical Health and Related Risk and Preventive Factors of Children Left Behind: A Systematic Review of Literature.

Justina Račaitė,Genė Šurkienė,Marija Jakubauskienė,Jutta Lindert,Khatia Antia,Rita Sketerskienė,Volker Winkler,Linda Wulkau

doi:10.3390/ijerph18031167

Abstract

The aim of our study was to systematically review the literature on physical health and related consequences of internal and international parental migration on left-behind children (LBC). This review followed PRISMA guidelines. We searched the PubMed, Web of Science, Academic Search Complete, PsycINFO, and Cochrane databases and included studies reporting physical health-related outcomes of children affected by parental migration. The quality of the studies was assessed using the Quality Assessment Tool for Observational Cohort and Cross-Sectional Studies. We selected 34 publications from a total of 6061 search results. The study found that LBC suffer from poor physical health as compared with non-LBC. Physical health-related risk factors such as underweight, lower weight, stunted growth, unhealthy food preferences, lower physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, injuries, and incomplete vaccination tend to be more prevalent among LBC in China. Studies focussing on international migration argue that having migrant parents might be preventive for undernutrition. Overall, our study showed that children affected by internal or international migration tend to have similar physical health outcomes. Moreover, we identified a lack of evidence on international parental migration that may have influenced the overall impacts. Further studies addressing international migration would contribute to better understand the impacts of migration for LBC.

Highlights

The United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of the Child “ [recognized] that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding” [1]
Studies included in our analysis reported contradictory results with respect to physical health outcomes of left-behind children (LBC) with one or both migrant parents
We systematically reviewed the evidence on the effects of internal and international parental migration on their children’s physical health outcomes and related risk and preventive factors

Summary

Introduction

The United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of the Child “ [recognized] that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding” [1]. The attachment theory, formulated by John Bowlby, states that for the successful social and emotional development, every child needs a close relationship with at least one primary caregiver [2]. There are multiple reasons for parental absence, such as divorce or death. Children are sometimes taken from unsafe family environments temporarily or permanently. The migration of parents is another form of child separation from one or both parents. The International Organization for Migration defines migration as “the movement of a

Objectives

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion