A study has revealed the worrying results of being a child of divorce and the long-term effects it can have on a person.

The immediate effects of a child’s parents who decided to divorce can include poor performance at school, becoming emotionally sensitive, and loss of interest in social activity, says FamilyMeans — but these typically decrease in the years that follow.

However, it’s been found that being a child of divorce can go on to affect some individuals until late into adulthood.

A new study has looked at 13,000 American adults aged 65 and over, and found that one in nine of respondents who experienced their parents divorcing as a child went on to be diagnosed with a potentially fatal condition.

This was in comparison to one in 15 people whose parents stayed together.

The condition that they were diagnosed with was a stroke; something that kills five million people a year across the globe.

Strokes were accountable for one in six cardiovascular disease-related deaths in the US in 2022, reported the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Children of divorce are more likely to have a stroke in later life (Getty Stock)

Mary Kate Schilke, first author, university lecturer in the Psychology Department at Tyndale University, said of the findings: “Our study indicates that even after taking into account most of the known risk factors associated with stroke — including smoking, physical inactivity, lower income and education, diabetes, depression, and low social support — those whose parents had divorced still had 61% higher odds of having a stroke.”

The link between being a child of divorce and increased risk of having a stroke is similar in magnitude to two other risk factors associated to strokes: depression and diabetes, News Medical reported.

It’s believed the link between experiencing your parents divorcing as a child and increased risk of stroke could come down to stress hormones.

The link between being a child of divorce and strokes could be down to stress (Getty Stock)

“From a biological embedding perspective, having your parents split up during childhood could lead to sustained high levels of stress hormones,” explained Professor Esme Fuller-Thomson, of the University of Toronto.

“Experiencing this as a child could have lasting influences on the developing brain and a child’s ability to respond to stress.”

This stress may have then affected the child’s sleep, which also contributes to risk of having a stroke later in life.

Fuller-Thompson said, as per Mail Online: “We don’t know why people whose parents have divorced when they were children have a higher prevalence of stroke, but it may be that the stress impacts their sleep quality.

“There is evidence that sleep disruption during childhood can set people up for developing insomnia in later life, and that may increase the risk of having a stroke.

“The prolonged stress of your parents separating may also permanently change the body’s response to stress, producing elevated levels of stress hormones like cortisol which can cause inflammation in the body and increase the risk of having a stroke.”

Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis’ decision to not leave their children with trust funds has continued to spark debate among social media users.

As of 2024, Kutcher has a net worth of a cool $200 million and Kunis $75 million meaning they have a combined wealth of around $275 million, as per Celebrity Net Worth. However, whenever the day comes where they both no longer reside on Earth, the couple’s children won’t be receiving any sort of trust fund. Unlucky.

In an interview with Dax Shepard on his podcast Armchair Expert in 2018, Kutcher explained the couple’s children Isabelle and Dimitri won’t be having ‘a trust set up for them’.

Instead, the actors are planning on donating their money to charity and ‘to various’ things.

Although, Kutcher added: “If my kids want to start a business, and they have a good business plan, I’ll invest in it. But they’re not getting trusts.”

While his remarks were made several years ago, Kutcher’s comments regularly resurface on social media, particularly when the discussion of who is and who isn’t a nepo baby rears its head.

Faye Sadou/Media Punch/Alamy Live News

And Kutcher and Kunis’ decision surrounding their finances continues to leave people divided.

One X user said: “There was a time when families sought to build dynasties, one generation building on the accomplishments of the last.

“Now everyone is an atomic unit, valuable only in so far as it serves the consumerist machine. And your children? Do not spoil them lest they become worse workers.”

Another shared: “Instead, they will leave their fortune to spoiled and entitled CEOs of nonprofits.”

In a 2017 interview with Elle UK, Kunis also opened up about raising her children and how she doesn’t want them to become spoiled despite their affluent upbringing.

Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Alamy

The Bad Moms actor said her main priority is to ensure they don’t evolve into ‘a**holes’.

“There’s enough a**holes in this world! We don’t need to contribute. But, you know, there’s some nice people,” she told the outlet.

As a result, Kutcher and Kunis didn’t even gift their children presents at Christmas time.

“We’re instituting [no presents] this year because when the kids are [younger than] one, it doesn’t really matter. Last year when we celebrated Christmas, Wyatt was two, and it was too much. We didn’t give her anything — it was the grandparents,” she said.

She even told her parents they had to limit presents to one gift.

“‘We’re begging you — if you have to give her something, pick one gift. Otherwise, we’d like to take a charitable donation to the Children’s Hospital or a pet [or] whatever you want,'” Kunis said.

So, what do you think?

Eva Mendes has spoken out about her returning to the film industry following a 10-year hiatus from Hollywood.

Mendes shares two daughters with Ryan Gosling, whom she’s believed to have secretly wed over the course of their years-long relationship.

Eva Mendes hasn’t starred in a film since 2014 (Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Images)

The last movie she starred in was Gosling’s directorial debut Lost River, with Mendes having spent the last decade focusing on parenting their children.

With her long break from the film industry in mind, many have questioned if Mendes – who has starred in blockbuster movies like 2 Fast 2 Furious, The Other Guys, Ghost Rider and Hitch during her career – is going to return to acting.

The 50-year-old star recently featured on Good Morning America to publicize her new children’s book Desi, Mami, and the Never-Ending Worries, host George Stephanopoulos asked: “Think you’re getting back [to acting]?”

“I don’t know,” Mendes replied. “If there’s interesting roles. I left at a time where, 10 years ago, I kind of felt like I did it, you know, I just worked with Ryan Gosling. He’s like the best.”

As well as working on Lost River, Gosling and Mendes starred in 2011 movie The Place Beyond The Pines together, which is when their romance is rumored to have started.

She continued to gush about her Barbie actor husband: “It was such a high off my career to work with him and what we created together that I was like, this is a good time to Seinfeld it and just walk out. So, who knows?”

Mendes previously labeled it a ‘no brainer’ to quit Hollywood in favor of bringing up her daughters, Esmeralda, 10, and Amada, eight.

The actress has a new children’s book out (Raymond Hall/GC Images)

“I’m so lucky,” said the mom-of-two said on Today earlier this year.

“I was like, if I could have this time with my children — and I still work, I just didn’t act, because acting takes you on location. It takes you away. It was almost just like a non-verbal agreement that it was like, ‘OK, [Ryan’s] going to work and I’m going to work. I’m just going to work here.'”

While Gosling has continued acting over the years, he did take a four-year break from the film industry after the birth of their youngest daughter to spend more time with his family.

“I wanted to spend as much time as I could with them,” the doting dad previously told GQ.

We all know family dynamics can be a bit tricky, and this family’s relationship turned particularly sour when the kids threatened to file a lawsuit.

Inheritance is often a topic of arguments within families, and this is exactly what happened to a mom who expressed her desire to sell the family home.

The unidentified woman’s husband had passed away and found that the home that they shared together was a ‘constant reminder’ of her late love.

The property is also where they raised their kids, and they weren’t happy to learn of their mother’s intentions of selling the home to downsize.

She also hoped by downsizing she could free up a bit of cash incase she needs it in the future for things such as medical expenses.

Her three children were having none of this though, plunging the woman’s plans into chaos.

When her kids discovered that she was putting the property on the market they threw a ‘disgusting tantrum’ and accused her of trying to ‘destroy their childhood memories and the final memories of their father by selling the family home’.

The 70-year-old mom, who wrote to the Daily Mail’s agony aunt for advice in April 2023, said her children ‘demanded’ that she sign over the property to them and that they will rent it out – so she can use the money it brings in to live off.

The mom-of-three wanted to sell her home. (Getty Stock Image)

But the woman refused and is adamant she wants to move on as being in the house is a ‘constant reminder’ of her late husband.

After telling the kids it was a firm no, they hit back by saying they had enlisted the services of lawyer to try and ‘legally stop’ her from selling up.

“They claim it’s their inheritance and that I’m trying to keep the money away from them,” she wrote.

“The last thing I wanted at this point in my life was to get involved in some horrendous family feud. I’m absolutely disgusted by their behavior and can’t get over how selfish they’re being.”

The devastated widow went on to say that her late husband would be ‘furious’ over the behavior of their children.

The children argued that the home was their inheritance. (Getty Stock Image)

And, although she doesn’t want to, she’s considering giving in to them so she can ‘live in peace without the threat of a lawsuit’ from her own offspring.

Agony aunt Jane Green sympathised with the woman over the ‘horrible’ situation she was in. But she thought there could be a solution that left all parties happy.

Green suggested either selling the property to the kids or offering to ‘help “finance” their purchasing of the house in return for a monthly stipend enabling you to live’.

However, she went on to say that while such options may help solve one problem, they don’t tackle the ‘emotional trauma’ she’s been through.

Summing up, Green told the mom to ‘bring in some experts, look at the options’ and ‘bring your children into those conversations and meetings so they can be a part of you all working this out’.

Personally I’d be telling my kids to sling their hooks if they acted in such a way.