Caring for grandchildren may increase longevity in older adults

“We’ve shown the benefits across a huge range of outcomes,” says the report’s senior author, Dr Rosanne Freak-Poli. “What stands out to me is that it is beneficial to both men and women. In the past, because of the gendered roles, we’ve been unsure, but we’ve demonstrated that.”

The health and longevity perks likely come from a combination of factors, the researchers say.

“Everyone who’s had a child knows it is a challenge to look after a child. Whether it’s for five minutes or an hour, you’re engaging differently,” says Freak-Poli.

Preparing food for and eating with their grandchildren can improve the grandparent’s diet; there is the physical activity of walking around, getting up and down, playing with and picking up children; the cognitive engagement of trying to explain big (or not-so-big) concepts to little minds; plus the social stimulation and the sense of purpose it can bring.

“These are all things that keep us physically and cognitively active as well as improving our health and wellbeing,” Freak-Poli says.

Lead author Dr Htet Lin Htun suspects the longevity benefits among the men (who also had lower rates of dementia, unlike the female participants) may be because caregiving is novel for this generation.

“It might trigger something in their mind – doing something meaningful and purposeful in later life, but for women it’s just another day of caring for other people.”

Interestingly, though men benefited more physically (women also reported more aches and pains), the traditional subjective identity of “caregiver” may explain why the female participants in the study reported greater mental wellbeing, says Freak-Poli.

It’s not just the carers who have better outcomes, adds Htun. “Children who are exposed to grandparents, versus kids who aren’t, have better wellbeing and learn in an improved way.”

Since her granddaughter, Charlie, was three and moved back to Sydney from America, Gabrielle Ingate’s involvement has been constant. The three generations live together.

As the 68-year-old travels regularly and has an active social life, she does not have fixed days of help, but tries to relieve the load of parenting whenever she can, regularly taking Charlie to Nippers and swimming and picking her up from school.

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“I really do enjoy when I’ve got Charlie and the two of us do things,” says the retired dentist.

Though she is conscious of reminding her granddaughter about manners and eye contact, she appreciates the unique role of grandparenting and that she does not have to play disciplinarian.

“Charlie always says, ‘Let’s have an ice cream. Let’s have this’. And [her mum would say] ‘We’re not having ice cream’. Of course, I take no notice,” she chuckles.

“She said, ‘are you going to tell mum?’ I said, ‘If she asks, yes, we’re never going to lie, but let’s just not tell’… so that stuff is fun.”

On the day we speak, Ingate has bought a puzzle to put together with the 10-year-old after she collects her from school. She admits there are days she’d prefer to sit and read a book, but the desire to contribute is greater: “I do think it keeps you young and active.”

In Australia, about 70 per cent of grandparents provide some sort of care for their family, while in 20 per cent of households, three generations live under one roof. It’s a trend that is set to continue with the global ageing population increasing rapidly. By 2050, it is estimated that one in six people worldwide will be over the age of 65.

Understanding how to maintain and improve people’s health and wellbeing as the population ages is important.

That includes the advantages of social prescribing – a healthcare approach where patients are connected to non-medical services – such as caregiving by grandparents or non-biological “voluntary” grandparents. This removes the onus on family connections which might allow for more people to be involved in caring responsibilities, says Htun.

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“Intergenerational caregiving could be implemented into social prescribing as an intervention,” he adds.

A 2025 social health report by the World Health Organisation points out that social connection lowers levels of inflammation, reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, dementia and depression.

“The impacts of social connection have gone under-recognised for too long,” the authors say. “Social health is not an optional extra. It is integral to health.”

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