Okay yeah, while some can say that they had their parents around while growing up, that doesn't always mean that they were REALLY there. Parents can easily be there physically in their children's lives, but being there emotionally; now that's a whole different story
Trailing behind the children, their mother follows with her head bent down, overly engrossed in the glowing screen in hand. Her hair was thrown up in a messy knot, resembling a rat's nest and as if she hadn’t given second thought to look presentable. Her eyes finally rise to look at mine, and they're as unwelcoming as a stormy night.
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This experience is a PRIME example of what an absent parent may look like. This has been an issue throughout families for many generations. Seeing this firsthand made me think to myself... is it really that fucking hard to involve yourself in your children's life? won't this negatively affect them??? Seeing this made me realize when a parent is inattentive or inactive in their children's life, it can lead to behavioral issues, how they interact with others around their age, and physical issues within them.
Now, let's get to the straight facts. This type of parenting can totally mess with a kid and how they behave, and it does! Millions of children around the world are affected. With this being such a large issue, there are many studies conducted linking neglect to behavior problems. One Study conducted by the National Library of Medicine assessed 138 children and their studies showed, "Thus, the absence of parental involvement in such activities, typical of negligence, can contribute to the child's poor performance, the increase of behavioral problems, and worsening of ADHD's typical symptoms." ADHD can be a a longgg term problem in children and stunt the way they grow in society. The behavioral problems that can be presented are inattentiveness when learning which can stunt their growth in school setting, but also children's impulsivity. It may also lead to them having tough times regulating interruptions, but this is also due to lack of structure in the household. 
Not only is this parenting style absolutely horrible for them behaviorally... but even their physical health is being effect! Let's talk about it- according to HealthWise: Neglect, domestic violence lower children's development,"These children -- a staggering 43% of the global under-5 population -- risk of nutrition, stunting and suboptimal brain development, which leads to lower learning and poor adult income." WOW! This is almost half of the population! This is such a large issue across the globe that it can end with long-term effects that can influence their adulthood. Imagine being set back for life all because of something you can’t control as a kid. This is exactly why parents absolutely cannot be lazy and ignore these nutritional statistics. Yes, it is completely normal for families to get busy during the week and to pick up take out or fast food on the way home from a busy day of work. But...the issue is when a parent just doesn't care enough to take the time of day to make their own CHILD a home cook meal and gets majority of their diet from fast food. Come on parents, if you can give your children the proper nutrition for them to grow up happy and healthy, are you really doing your best?
When someone asks you the question: "Who are the people closest to you?" The typical answer would be either your family or friends. But with poor and absent parenting it can cause stunted social growth which can absolutely be the deal breaker on how successful children will be at interacting with others. According to the American psychological Association, "When infants attach successfully to their parents and caregivers, they learn to trust that the outside world is a welcoming place and are more likely to explore and interact with their environment. This lays the groundwork for further social, emotional, and cognitive development" When the opposite of this happens it can really fuck with how children interact with others. They don't learn simple skills such as boundaries, how to express emotions, overly attention seeking, and many other simple rules for interacting with others.
Firstly, this behavior isn't always fully due to the parents simply not caring, that would be very stupid to think. There are many other factors that can be going on in their lives, whether stress, depression, or other issues that have been taking up their time. Still...they are affecting how their children are growing, but in some of these cases it leaves a positive effect and helps the children thrive with the lack of parenting. They can adapt and learn how to become independent from an early age. While their parents may not be giving them the attention they deserve, they just go looking somewhere else for a parental figure like their wonderful teachers, coaches, and daycare workers.
Alrighty let's go over what you can do now. Situations such as absent parenting can be spotted throughout society even in the simplest settings. You want to step in before the effects of the parent can have a long-term effect on their behavior, physical health, and how they interact with others. If you're a constant in the child's everyday life, you can step up and be the parental figure they never had. You can reach out to the parent or a trusted adult to speak to the parent to make an adjustment in the childrens life which is ALWAYS better than doing nothing.
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