Mental illness is often seen as an individual struggle — something that affects one person’s emotions, relationships, or career. Yet new research from Sweden reveals that its echoes reach far deeper and last far longer than we might imagine. According to a landmark study led by the Karolinska Institutet and published in JAMA Psychiatry, the mental health of parents can profoundly shape not only their children’s development but also their very survival across decades.
The study, titled “Parental Mental Disorders and Offspring Mortality up to Middle Age,” paints a sobering picture of how the invisible burden of mental illness in one generation can ripple through the next. Using data from more than 3.5 million births, researchers found that children whose parents had mental health disorders faced significantly higher risks of dying young — not only in childhood but well into adulthood.
The findings are not just numbers in a journal; they represent millions of unseen stories — of families living with pain, resilience, and the quiet hope that the next generation might have a different fate.
The Largest Study of Its Kind
To uncover these links, researchers turned to Sweden’s national population registers, which hold detailed information about births, medical diagnoses, and causes of death. They tracked 3,548,788 individuals born between 1973 and 2014, connecting them to their biological parents and following their health outcomes through the end of 2023.
This unprecedented dataset included both mothers and fathers — 1,791,038 mothers and 1,762,659 fathers — allowing scientists to examine how each parent’s mental health shaped their child’s long-term wellbeing. The participants ranged in age from 9 to 51 years by the study’s conclusion, creating a generational window wide enough to see how early life exposure influences mortality across the lifespan.
Mental health diagnoses were drawn from the Swedish National Patient Register and covered a broad range of conditions: substance use disorders, psychotic disorders, mood and anxiety disorders, eating disorders, personality disorders, and intellectual disabilities. Researchers then linked this information to the national Cause of Death Register, which tracks both natural and unnatural deaths, including those from cancer, cardiovascular disease, suicide, and unintentional injuries.
The scope of the study was vast, but its purpose was precise: to determine whether growing up with a parent who has a mental disorder affects a child’s risk of premature death — and how that risk evolves over time.
The Numbers Behind the Lives
The results were striking. Children exposed to parental mental illness experienced a death rate of 7.93 per 10,000 person-years — more than double that of unexposed children, whose rate stood at 3.55 per 10,000 person-years.
When researchers adjusted for socioeconomic factors and other variables, the disparities remained stark. Offspring of parents with mental disorders had more than twice the risk of dying from any cause (Hazard Ratio 2.13), nearly twice the risk from natural causes (HR 1.88), and almost two and a half times the risk from unnatural causes such as accidents or suicide (HR 2.45).
The pattern held across almost every diagnostic category. The lowest risk was associated with parental eating disorders (HR 1.58), while the highest was observed for parental intellectual disabilities (HR 2.22). Yet perhaps the most haunting finding came when both parents were affected.
When both mother and father had a diagnosed mental disorder, the child’s risk of death more than tripled overall (HR 3.35), doubled for natural causes (HR 2.57), and quadrupled for unnatural deaths (HR 4.24). The danger was most acute when both parents received diagnoses during the child’s earliest years — around ages one to two — when the child’s dependence is greatest and the family environment most fragile.
At that stage, the risk of death soared nearly fivefold (HR 4.92 for all-cause deaths), a reminder that early childhood is not only a time of growth but also of deep vulnerability.
Beyond Statistics: The Human Story
Behind every data point lies a life — and often, a family doing its best against enormous odds. The findings do not point to blame but to connection. Mental disorders, whether depression, schizophrenia, addiction, or anxiety, affect not only the person diagnosed but everyone who loves them.
Children growing up in households where a parent struggles with mental illness may face a cascade of challenges. Financial instability, inconsistent caregiving, social isolation, and emotional stress can all contribute to poorer health outcomes. Some may experience neglect or trauma; others may develop coping patterns that persist into adulthood. Biological factors may also play a role, as genetics can increase vulnerability to both mental and physical illnesses.
The study’s authors emphasize that the increased mortality risk is not inevitable. It reflects gaps in support — both social and medical — that leave many families to navigate mental illness alone. The message is clear: when society fails to care for parents’ mental health, it fails their children too.
The Web of Causes
Why would parental mental illness influence mortality decades later? The answers are multifaceted.
Part of the risk comes from behavioral and environmental factors. Parents with untreated mental disorders may struggle to provide stable routines, adequate nutrition, or preventive healthcare. Economic difficulties and social stigma can further isolate families from resources that could buffer these effects.
Another part stems from biological inheritance. Certain mental disorders, such as depression or schizophrenia, have genetic components that may predispose children to similar vulnerabilities, including increased risk of substance abuse or suicide.
Finally, societal factors amplify the problem. Mental health care remains underfunded worldwide, and many parents go undiagnosed or untreated. Without proper intervention, the cycle of distress can repeat across generations, perpetuating both emotional suffering and physical harm.
When Both Parents Struggle
The study’s finding that dual-parent diagnoses carry the highest risk underscores how fragile family systems can become when both caregivers are affected. When both parents face their own psychological battles, the home environment can become unpredictable, even unsafe. The child may lose the emotional scaffolding that fosters resilience and security.
Yet even here, there is hope. Research shows that when families receive early intervention — from therapy to parenting support to community outreach — outcomes can improve dramatically. Stability, empathy, and consistent care are powerful antidotes to the chaos mental illness can bring.
The Lifelong Shadow
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the study is its revelation that the elevated risks do not fade with age. Children of parents with mental disorders remained at increased risk of death even into middle adulthood, long after they had left home.
This persistence suggests that early experiences shape lifelong health trajectories. Stress in childhood can alter the body’s hormonal and immune systems, leading to chronic inflammation and higher risks of cardiovascular disease or cancer later in life. The scars of early adversity, though invisible, can echo through decades.
At the same time, the findings highlight a powerful truth: what begins in vulnerability can end in resilience. Many children of parents with mental illness grow into compassionate, resourceful adults, shaped by empathy and strength. Understanding the risks is not about fatalism — it’s about identifying where help is most needed and offering it early.
Implications for Public Health
The Karolinska Institutet study carries profound implications for global health policy. It argues that mental health is not an isolated medical issue but a cornerstone of public well-being. By supporting parents, we protect entire generations.
Early screening for mental health conditions during pregnancy and after childbirth, integrated family-centered care, and social support systems can all help break the chain of inherited risk. Schools, pediatricians, and social workers also play critical roles in identifying children who may need extra support.
As the authors note, the consequences of neglecting these interventions may grow as populations age. Because mortality risk rises naturally with time, the absolute number of affected individuals will increase unless preventive measures are taken.
From Data to Compassion
Scientific studies often deal in numbers — hazard ratios, confidence intervals, statistical models — but this research ultimately speaks to something deeply human. It reminds us that mental illness is not a private failing but a shared challenge. It affects communities, health systems, and generations.
When a parent suffers, a child feels it too — sometimes in ways that last a lifetime. Yet when a parent receives care, when a family is supported, the ripple effects can be equally profound. Healing one person’s mind can help safeguard another’s future.
The Hope Within the Findings
Despite its sobering message, the study is not a story of despair but of awareness. By revealing the hidden connections between mental health and survival, it calls for compassion, understanding, and action.
The data illuminate what has long been whispered: that caring for parents’ mental health is not optional — it is vital for the next generation’s well-being. Every therapy session, every act of support, every effort to reduce stigma contributes to a chain reaction of healing that can last for decades.
In the end, the message from the Karolinska Institutet study is both scientific and profoundly human. Life and mind are intertwined, and the health of one generation flows directly into the next. If we nurture that connection — through empathy, research, and care — we do more than prevent early deaths. We give future generations a chance to live not just longer lives, but fuller ones.
More information: Hui Wang et al, Parental Mental Disorders and Offspring Mortality up to Middle Age, JAMA Psychiatry (2025). DOI: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2025.2572
