Children of divorced parents are at higher risk of stroke: Study

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Children of divorce may have one more thing to blame on their parents.

New research has found that people whose parents divorced during their younger years are nearly two-thirds more likely to have a stroke later in life.

The recent study, published in the medical journal PLOS One, analyzed 13,205 people aged 65 and older who were part of the 2022 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), a project run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to collect health-related data.

Researchers found that participants whose parents split before they turned 18 were 61% more likely to experience a stroke later in life.

This elevated risk persisted even after scientists accounted for depression, diabetes and social isolation, all of which are known factors to increase a person’s chance of stroke.

“Our study indicates that even after taking into account most of the known risk factors associated with stroke — including smoking, physical inactivity, lower income and education, diabetes, depression, and low social support — those whose parents had divorced still had 61% higher odds of having a stroke,” study author Mary Kate Schilke said.

“The magnitude of the association between parental divorce and stroke was comparable to well-established risk factors for stroke such as male gender and having diabetes,” Esme Fuller-Thomson, lead author of the study, added.

A stroke happens when blood stops flowing to any part of a person’s brain, damaging brain cells, according to the Heart & Stroke Foundation, which noted the effects depend on the part of the brain that was damaged and the severity of the stroke.

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Fuller-Thomson also noted they excluded participants who were exposed to sexual or physical abuse.

“Our research wanted to clarify the association between parental divorce and stroke by avoiding any potential confounding with childhood abuse,” she explained.

The researchers said that while it’s unclear why there is a link between children of divorce and stroke risk, biological and social factors can be contributing factors.

“From a biological embedding perspective, having your parents split up during childhood could lead to sustained high levels of stress hormones,” Fuller-Thomson noted.

“Experiencing this as a child could have lasting influences on the developing brain and a child’s ability to respond to stress.”

Schilke added: “If future research finds similar links between parental divorce and stroke, it is possible that knowledge about whether or not their patient grew up in an intact family will be used by health professionals to improve targeted outreach for stroke prevention and education.”