Broken Home Doubles Chance of Schizophrenia

Whether the separation is due to death or divorce, children from broken homes are twice as likely to develop schizophrenia, a British study shows. Odds further increase when a parent dies or is absent for a year or more.

The study further showed that Caribbean- and Afro-Britons were respectively nine and six times as likely to suffer from the disease or related psychosis. These groups also showed higher rates of separation than the general population.

It remains unclear what part abuse, parental mental illness or stress leading to the separation may play in developing the disease--as well as the role of the poverty which may result after families split up. The findings nonetheless make a noted argument for the role of environment (rather than genetics alone) in the development of schizophrenia and other mental illnesses.

Read more: Broken home linked to psychosis