{"id":15443,"date":"2019-02-20T15:55:10","date_gmt":"2019-02-20T15:55:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=15443"},"modified":"2019-02-21T17:40:36","modified_gmt":"2019-02-21T17:40:36","slug":"paid-family-leave-is-an-investment-in-public-health-not-a-handout","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/paid-family-leave-is-an-investment-in-public-health-not-a-handout\/","title":{"rendered":"Paid family leave is an investment in public health, not a handout"},"content":{"rendered":"

Darby Saxbe<\/a>, University of Southern California \u2013 Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Most Americans \u2013 on both sides of the political aisle<\/a> \u2013 say they support<\/a> paid parental leave<\/a>. However, we haven\u2019t yet found the political will to make it happen. In part, that\u2019s because the discussion always seems to start with the question, \u201cHow do we pay for it<\/a>?\u201d<\/p>\n

That question goes only halfway, though. As a researcher who focuses on stress and health within families<\/a>, I believe there\u2019s a more important question to ask: \u201cHow do we pay for the lack of parental leave?\u201d In other words, how does the stress of a rapid return to work affect parents, and in turn, cost society as a whole? Recently, I sought to answer this question<\/a> by delving into research<\/a> on the many changes that new parents experience in the first weeks, months, and years after the birth of a new child \u2013 and the possibility that all these changes might not just compromise children\u2019s well-being, but also put parents\u2019 long-term health at risk.<\/p>\n

A global outlier<\/h2>\n

How fast should women \u201cbounce back\u201d after giving birth? Instantly, at least according to celebrity magazines. And many workplaces in the United States deliver the same message. The typical American maternity leave lasts only 10 weeks<\/a>, and a quarter of new mothers return to work within two weeks<\/a> of delivering a child.<\/p>\n