A study showed that children raised by same-sex couples were both happier and healthier than those reared in traditional homes.

A study conducted by University of Melbourne researchers showed that children raised by same-sex couples were healthier and enjoyed better family cohesion than those reared in traditional homes.

The participants included 315 same-sex parents and 500 of their children.

Parent reported surveys were submitted, and their answers tallied by the Melbourne team.

They found that the kids scored 6 percent higher than the population at large when it came to family cohesion, general health and general behavior, and showed no difference in scores for mental health, self-esteem, and temperament.

Those results held even when controls were introduced to account for potentially influential factors like household income and parents’ education levels.

Other studies, although none as large, have produced similar results, but those opposed to same-sex marriages are reluctant to accept them.

Among the concerns raised includes how the child will fare later in life as they enter adulthood.

The lead researcher of the Australian study does admit that there are factors beyond the parents’ control that could be damaging.

He said, “Stigma can be subtle…or it can be overt and very harmful, in the form of bullying and abuse at school. What we have found is that the more stigma these families experience, the greater the impact on the social and emotional well-being of children.”