Absent Parents Tied to Earlier Smoking, Drinking in Kids

Young children who had an absent parent by the time they were 7 years old were linked with increased risks of smoking and alcohol consumption prior to their teenage years, data from a large cohort study in the U.K. found. Overall, children who experienced parental absence by age 7 were associated with a more than two-fold increased risk of having smoked or consumed enough alcohol to feel drunk by age 11 compared with those who were living with both natural parents at that time, reported Rebecca E. Lacey, PhD, of University College in London and colleagues, writing in Archives of Disease in Childhood. http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/GeneralPediatrics/60733?xid=nl_mpt_DHE_2016-10-14&eun=g721819d0r&pos=8