Father's memories 'help boys deal with stress'

Fathers who fill their sons with fond memories of football matches or fishing trips may be doing more good than they realise.

Boys who recall happy times with their father grow up more emotionally stable and resistant to stress, scientists have learned.

Previous research had already shown that motherly affection has a similar effect on babies, helping them to suffer less from anxiety and stress in later life.

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The new US study focused on 912 men and women, aged 25 to 74, who were asked about the quality of the relationships they had with their parents as children. Men who remembered their fathers fondly were better able to cope with day-to-day stressful events than those who did not. Psychologist Professor Melanie Mallers, from California State University, Fullerton, who led the research, said: "Most studies on parenting focus on the relationship with the mother.

"But, as our study shows, fathers do play a unique and important role in the mental health of their children later in life." Participants in the study were assessed for levels of psychological and emotional stress in their daily lives, and their ability to cope with stressful events.

More men than women reported having a good relationship with their mothers.

Both men and women who got on well their mothers were 3 per cent less affected by psychological distress than those who had a poor maternal relationship. But a special connection was seen between men and fathers.

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Men were more able to keep their emotions under control in the face of stress when the memories they had of their fathers were happy ones. The same was not generally as true for women.

Participants of both sexes who had poor childhood relationships with both parents were more likely to encounter stressful incidents during the study period.

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