Older adults and their children move closer together after health issues

By Shereen Lehman NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Seniors who have a stroke or heart attack are more likely to end up living closer to their adult children afterward, according to a new study. Adult children often serve as informal caregivers when their parents become disabled after an illness, researchers note. “This study shows a major health problem of an older person – like a stroke – leads to a significant increase in the family relocation for closer residential proximity between (family members who don’t live together),” HwaJung Choi told Reuters Health in an email. “This suggests that the growing older population with disability in the U.S. and elsewhere can have a significant effect on residential choices of both older adults and their middle-aged children,” Choi said.