How do children benefit from being raised by older parents?

The cognitive and emotional changes that take place from early to middle adulthood contribute to midlife adults' readiness to parent. In some studies, mothers who were older when their first child was born tended to demonstrate more positive parenting behaviors such as hugs, kisses and praise; and fewer negative ones such as threats or slaps. Finally, children raised by older mothers tend to be healthier, having fewer visits to the hospital, a greater likelihood of receiving all of their immunizations by 9 months of age, and higher scores on measures of cognitive, language, and social development through age 5.