More Than a Million U.S. Kids Care for Ill Adults
ROCKLEDGE, Fla., Oct. 16, 2005 — -- Like most high school seniors, Francis Arthur has a lot on his plate, including schoolwork, basketball practice and a part-time job. But on top of all that, he also cooks, cleans and cares for his ailing grandparents -- one with diabetes, the other dementia.
"Sometimes I'll be tired," he says, "so tired, like, I can't even concentrate in class.
"I've had a lot of responsibility," he adds, "since I was born."
Arthur is part of a hidden problem in this country. A new study by the National Alliance for Caregiving -- the first ever in the United States -- reveals that 1.3 million to 1.4 million kids nationwide care for sick or disabled relatives.
"Most people in the U.S. would be oblivious to this," says Gail Gibson Hunt of the National Alliance for Caregiving. "That's not just the general public. That's policymakers. That's Congress. That's doctors and the health care system."
While there is some support for the 44 million adult caregivers in this country, children doing the same thing are pretty much on their own.
Maggie Ornstein, 27, has been taking care of her mother since she suffered a brain aneurysm a decade ago.
"At a point when I would have been normally breaking away from my family, my mom became like a child of mine," she says.
Some younger caregivers, like Ornstein, still thrive with all that responsibility. But British researchers, who have been studying the issue for years, say it takes a toll on most.
"They may become depressed," says Saul Becker, a professor of social care and health at the University of Birmingham in England. "They may develop emotional difficulties. They may develop health problems."
Arthur believes he missed out on something.
"I missed a lot of my childhood," he says. "A lot."
Arthur has had to grow up fast, but he's not bitter about it. He doesn't have time to be. In addition to everything else, he's studying for college. He hopes to become a professional nurse so he can care for even more people in need.
ABC News' Geoff Morrell originally reported this story for "World News Tonight" on Sept. 18, 2005.
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