Broken hearts: Are children of divorced parents at higher risk of a stroke?

Divorce is often seen as a deeply personal decision, but its ripple effects can extend far beyond the couple involved.

Recent research has uncovered a troubling connection between parental divorce and an increased risk of stroke in their children later in life. The study reveals that children who experience parental separation have 60 per cent higher odds of suffering a stroke compared to those who grew up in intact families.

Here’s a closer look at the heartbreaking research.

The divorce-stroke connection

A study conducted by researchers at the University of Toronto, Tyndale University, and the University of Texas at Arlington found that one in nine over-65s with divorced parents were diagnosed with a stroke.

By contrast, only one in fifteen adults whose parents stayed together suffered from the same life-threatening condition.

Stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is obstructed or when a ruptured blood vessel leaks blood into the brain. According to The New York Post, it remains one of the leading causes of death in the United States, accounting for 162,600 fatalities in 2023.

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Published in PLOS One, the study analysed survey data from 13,205 Americans born before 1960. The group included individuals aged 65 and older, with 57 per cent being female, 79 per cent white, 9 per cent Black, and 12 per cent Hispanic or from other racial backgrounds.

Among these participants, 7.3 per cent had experienced stroke and 14 per cent had experienced parental divorce during childhood.

To ensure accuracy, researchers excluded participants who had experienced sexual or physical abuse during childhood.

“We found that even when people hadn’t experienced childhood physical or sexual abuse and had at least one adult who made them feel safe in their childhood home, they still were more likely to have a stroke if their parents had divorced," explained senior author Esme Fuller-Thomson, PhD, a professor of social work and director of the Institute for Life Course and Aging at the University of Toronto.

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Dr Fuller-Thomson said the researchers “were saddened, but not surprised,” that parental divorce was associated with greater chances of stroke.

“We were surprised that the association between parental divorce and stroke was of similar magnitude to two well-established risk factors for stroke: diabetes and male gender,” she said. “We need to shed light on the mechanisms that may contribute to this association.”

Also read: What is ‘no-fault’ divorce? Why are US conservatives against it?

What is the reason behind higher stroke chances?

Chronic stress during childhood, often resulting from the emotional turmoil of witnessing parental separation, is believed to play a significant role in increasing stroke risk later in life.

Researchers suggest that prolonged exposure to stress can disrupt the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, a critical system that regulates the body’s response to stress. When the HPA axis becomes dysregulated, it can lead to heightened vulnerability to stroke.

Although the study wasn’t specifically designed to pinpoint the exact reasons behind this increased risk, researchers theorise that a combination of biological and social factors is likely at play.

“From a biological embedding perspective, having your parents split up during childhood could lead to sustained high levels of stress hormones. Experiencing this as a child could have lasting influences on the developing brain and a child’s ability to respond to stress,” explained Dr Fuller-Thomson.

Social dynamics may also contribute to the heightened risk. For older generations, divorce was far less common and carried a significant stigma. As a result, the level of parental conflict preceding a divorce may have been more intense, making the experience particularly traumatic for children, the researchers wrote.

It is important to note that this study only establishes a correlation between parental divorce and stroke risk, not a direct causal relationship. “This doesn’t prove that divorce causes an increase in stroke risk, only that the two things are related,” Fuller-Thomson clarified.

Divorce rates on the rise in India

While divorce rates in India remain significantly lower than in Western countries, they are gradually increasing as societal attitudes evolve.

A Moneycontrol analysis based on data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) highlights a steady rise in divorce rates across the country over the past seven years. Notably, the proportion of divorced or separated women in rural areas has been climbing, reflecting a shift in traditionally conservative settings.

In urban India, divorce rates among men have seen a sharper increase, growing from 0.3 per cent in 2017-18 to 0.5 per cent in 2023-24. Among urban women surveyed by PLFS, 0.7 per cent were divorced, a slight rise from 0.6 per cent seven years ago.

Despite this upward trend, India’s divorce rate remains one of the lowest globally. In comparison, the United States reported a divorce rate of 14.56 divorces per 1,000 married women in 2022, according to Bowling Green State University.

With input from agencies