Father mental distress linked to poorer child development from infancy through to teenage years
Men often miss out on crucial mental health support as they become fathers. A meta-analysis of 48 international studies suggests that the cost of inaction may impact children’s development.
Key Messages from the authors
From Dr Genevieve Le Bas, Lead Author:
“We know that around one in ten new dads experience clinical levels of depression, anxiety, or stress. We wanted to know if this was linked to their children’s development. Our review brings together the international evidence on that question.”
“What we found is that when dads are struggling with their mental health, it is most clearly linked to how their children develop socially and emotionally, how they understand and express emotions, how they make sense of the world, and even how they communicate. We also saw links with physical health outcomes like a child’s body weight, sleep habits, and eating patterns.”
From Professor Delyse Hutchinson, Senior Author:
“The takeaway is clear: supporting men’s mental health as they transition into fatherhood isn’t just good for dads; it can benefit their children as well as the whole family. We’d love to see health services routinely checking in on dads’ mental health during pregnancy and after the baby arrives, and offering support and referrals that are tailored more to dads’ needs.”
Review
Paternal Perinatal Depression, Anxiety, and Stress and Child Development: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
JAMA Pediatrics | 2025
Genevieve Le Bas, Stephanie R. Aarsman, Alana Rogers, Jacqui A. Macdonald, Gessica Misuraca, Sarah Khor, Elizabeth A. Spry, Larissa Rossen, Emmelyn Weller, Kayla Mansour, George Youssef, Craig A. Olsson, Samantha J. Teague, Delyse Hutchinson.
Access the review:
doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2025.0880
Review summary
This review combines the results from 84 prior studies from around the world, representing 48 longitudinal cohorts that tracked fathers and their children over time. From these, 674 statistical associations were meta-analysed. Overall, consistent, though modest, associations were found between fathers’ mental distress (depression, anxiety, or stress) during pregnancy or the first two years after birth, and poorer child development, up to 18 years of age, across several domains. The clearest links were with children’s social and emotional development. Smaller but still notable links were found for language cognitive, and physical development (including sleep and growth).
Timing of a father’s distress may also be important. Father distress in the early period after the birth of a baby was more strongly linked to their child’s later developmental concerns than distress during the pregnancy period. This is likely because the postnatal months are when fathers and infants begin to interact directly. The authors emphasise that this does not mean waiting until after the birth to act; the earlier support is provided, the better. Investments are needed in routine mental and physical health checks for dads, ideally integrated into existing primary care practices or antenatal and postpartum appointments, with clear referrals into mental health services, peer support ‘dads’ groups or other relevant services.
Page last updated April 2026