No difference between straight, LGBT parents raising kids

We thought you might like to know: if you were raised by LGBT parents or if you’re LGBT parents raising a child, you’re doing fine if two studies are anything to go by.

These studies are particularly helpful as one looks at children by raised by gay fathers while the other focuses on lesbian households.

LGBT parents: Two gay dads

On one hand, new research indicates that children of gay fathers are as well adjusted as those children born to straight parents.

The study, conducted by pediatrician Ellen C. Perrin of Tufts Medical Center and her research team, assessed the survey responses of 732 gay fathers in 47 US states about their children.

The study noted that 88 percent of these gay fathers reported that it was “not true” that their child is unhappy or depressed.

Compare this to a similar survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of straight fathers in the US that reported 87 percent said the same of their children.

“Gay fathers report that their parenting activities and their perceptions of their children’s well-being are similar to those of children with heterosexual parents, despite barriers to becoming fathers and ongoing experiences of stigmatization,” the authors of the study reported.

The study also reported that nearly a third of the fathers reported feeling stigmatized for their decision to raise children and a similar percentage said their children experienced stigma as well.

“Because stigma continues to interfere with the efforts of gay men to become parents and with the lives of gay men and their children, our research underscores the need for social and legal protections for families headed by same-sex parents,” said Perrin.

LGBT parents: Lesbian households

On the other hand, another study indicated that children of same-sex parents are just as healthy emotionally and physically as children of different-sex parents.

The study– conducted by researchers affiliated with the Williams Institute, the University of Amsterdam, and Columbia University– only looked at lesbian households because there were too few male same-sex parent families in the database.

They found that children raised by female same-sex couples are just as healthy physically and emotionally as kids from opposite-sex couples.

However, the study noted that lesbian parents reported higher levels of parenting stress.

“Our earlier studies have shown that same-sex parents feel pressured to justify the quality of their parenting more than their heterosexual counterparts,” said study co-author Dr. Nanette Gartrell in an interview with the Bay Area Reporter.

“We also suspect and feel that more study is warranted, but the cultural spotlight on same-sex parenting may be part of the stress,” Gartrell said.

The study on LGBT parents compared data taken from the 2011-2012 National Survey of Children’s Health, a nationally representative population-based survey on children’s health.