- A new Finnish study suggests that individuals with more siblings are less likely to purchase mental health medication following the death of a parent.
- The research observed a reduction in the buying of anxiety and depression medication among those with more brothers and sisters in the year before and after a parent's passing.
- This correlation was particularly evident in women, and the likelihood of seeking medication was higher after a mother's death compared to a father's.
- Only children whose mothers died showed a 5.1 percentage point higher probability of purchasing medication compared to only children who had not experienced such a loss, with this figure decreasing for those with more siblings.
- The study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, also found that deaths due to dementia led to more drug purchases, and researchers noted that shrinking kinship networks could increase strain on children as parents age.
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