The vital role family plays in society

You may have heard that nothing is more important than family, but what you might not know is, that sentiment has scientific backing.

The family unit is not only an essential part of a healthy society, it’s essential in helping children and adults achieve optimal health and happiness.

Creating happiness

If you could do something scientifically proven to make you happier or bring you more peace and satisfaction, you’d likely do it. That’s why, despite fluctuating trends and criticism, people keep getting married and bearing children.

A recent Psychology Today article underscores what other research has already shown, that married people are statistically happier than their single counterparts. There are myriad factors responsible for this, but the publication highlights one in particular: The number and depth of personal relationships has the greatest effect of all on happiness, and many people get the biggest boost from their marriages.

Those effects don’t disappear with the honeymoon. In fact, they might even prevent or assuage the infamous midlife crisis phenomenon, according to a study in the Journal of Happiness Studies, which says that marriage “helps ease the causes of the mid-life dip in life satisfaction.”

Raising healthy children

All it takes is listening to a few minutes of news each day to agree that society is in a mental health crisis.

Today’s children and adolescents are more stressed, more depressed and at a higher risk of suicide than ever before. Between 2007 and 2012, there was a 20 percent increase in the diagnosis of anxiety in children ages 6 to 17, according to the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. At the same time, the Index of Belonging and Rejection shows that the majority of 15-to-17-year-olds in America do not live in nuclear families, with 40 percent of children born outside of marriage and one in three living in single-parent homes.

Building strong families

While strong marriages and intact families may contribute to happy, fulfilled lives and healthy children, that doesn’t mean every intact family is strong. While no family is without problems, there are certainly ways you can strengthen family relationships and enrich each other’s lives.

For example, Parenting NI shares that spending time doing everyday things together not only strengthens family bonds and encourages healthy communication, but also helps children build self-esteem and develop positive behaviors. Sharing mealtimes, chores and regular recreational activities can help forge lasting bonds between family members and create positive memories.

Additionally, families who attend religious or worship services together have the added benefit of sharing core beliefs, values and goals. Furthermore, when church is a regular part of family life, you gain the support of a community of like-minded families that help inspire and strengthen your own. Many churches provide family-centered activities and events, so you’re not always grasping for ways to spend time together.

It may sound trite, but the phrase “families that play together, stay together” isn’t just a cute adage. Individuals who really believe that — and act on it — create happy marriages, children and communities.

Gather your family to experience positive community at Christ’s Church of the Valley. We believe church should be about real life and community. A place where fun isn’t just possible, it’s encouraged.Visit ccv.church for more information.