Inserm publishes a study according to which the effects of paternity leave on the mental health of fathers are positive.
Where he thinks that the depression post-partum concerns 1 in 6 women in the year following the birth of their enfant.
What regarding fathers? Inserm assumes that “10% of fathers are likely to develop it during the year following the birth of their child”. And published on January 4 a study highlighting the beneficial effects of paternity leave on the mental health of fathers.
The effect of 2 weeks of paternity leave
Researchers from Inserm and Sorbonne University at the Pierre-Louis Institute of Epidemiology and Public Health used data from a large cohort study, which includes more than 13,000 mothers and nearly 11,000 fathers in France. whose children were born in 2011. At that time, paternity leave was no more than two weeks.
The fathers had to answer a questionnaire two months following delivery. It turns out that 19% of them had indicated that they had not taken and did not intend to take their paternity leave; and that 17% were considering doing so, when 64% had already taken it.
Fathers and postpartum: what results?
Most important results? 4.5% of fathers who took paternity leave and 4.8% of those intending to use it presented a depression postpartum once morest 5.7% of those who did not use it.
Katharine Barry, Inserm doctoral student at Sorbonne University and lead author of this study, summarizes:
In addition to the benefits that paternity leave may confer in terms of family dynamics and child development, it might therefore also have positive effects in terms of the mental health of fathers.
What impact on women?
Only, among women1 in 6 mothers (16.1%) whose partner had taken paternity leave had postpartum depression compared to 15.1% of those whose partner intended to use paternity leave, and finally 15, 3% of those whose partner had not taken paternity leave.
What would be the reason? The specialist believes that “The negative association observed in mothers might suggest that a duration of two weeks of paternity leave is, on the contrary, not sufficient to prevent postpartum depression in mothers”.
Henceforth, it would be appropriate to analyze the effects of extension of the duration of paternity leave to 25 daysin effect since July 1, 2021. Anyway, “this work (…) supports the importance of family policies targeted at fathers and questions the modalities of paternity leave beneficial to the mental health of both members of the couple”.
