Atlanta, GA -- Believe it or not, where you live could play a role in your child's mental health.
Researchers at Georgia State University took a look at how your neighborhood could impact your family.
GSU professor, Dr. Monica Swahn, one of the study's authors, says there's a strong association between neighborhoods and mental health.
"Communities where people care for each other and communicate and engage and are better to raise children," said Swahn.
Researchers looked at data from nearly 100,000 children ages six to 17 in a National Survey of Children's Health.
The children who lived in areas with parents of caretakers described as "non-supportive" had significantly higher odd of having a diagnosed mental health disorder.
That's basically communities where neighbors don't help one another watch out for the welfare of children.
Swahn says parents should talk to people in a community, and really get to know the area before deciding to move.
"Are there strong faith based communities, are there other activities are people connected to the schools, are parents volunteering," said Swahn. "I think all those things are signs of strong communities, where people come together, do things together, and that benefits the children."
According to the study, other factors can impact children as well. Kids with five to nine traumatic events are almost 5 times as likely to have a mental health disorder. Those events can include things like divorce, substance abuse, suicide or other early losses.
Children whose parents have poor mental health could also face increased off for mental health issues as well.
"Parents need to take good care of themselves and need to get treatment in order to be better parents and get help for their children," said Swahn.
