Being a single dad can be hazardous to your health

Single dads are twice as likely to report poor physical and mental health as fathers with partners, according to a new Canadian study.

In addition, solo fathers experience the same stress and strain as single mothers, which is likely related to low income and unemployment, researchers say.

"We have long known that lone parenthood has negative effects on parents' health, but few studies focus on the single father population," said lead author Maria Chiu of the University of Toronto.

Single-parent households make up 27 per cent of families in the US, 25 per cent of families in the United Kingdom and 16 per cent of families in Canada, Chiu and her colleagues write in Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, online December 6.

"We know that, in general, men are more reluctant to seek health services, especially mental health, because of the stigmas attached," she said. "We need to pay attention to the physical health and mental health of single dads in the same way we do with single mums."

Chiu and colleagues looked at responses from 1,058 lone fathers in Canadian Community Health Surveys between 2001 and 2013. About 12 per cent of single fathers and single mothers reported...