The mother-daughter relationship: what is its potential as a locus for health promotion?

Maghboeba Mosavel1, Christian Simon, Debbie Van Stade

  • 1Center for Reducing Health Disparities, MetroHealth Medical Center, Cleveland, OH 44109, USA. maghboeba.mosavel@case.edu

In this article we examine the potential influence of adolescent girls on mothers' health-related knowledge and behaviors. Surveys were conducted with 131 mothers and 145 daughters to explore the extent of shared social activities between mothers and their adolescent daughters in a low-income South African community, and the degree to which mothers are receptive to advice from daughters. Eighty-six percent of daughters reported that their mothers had asked them for advice, and 93% of mothers indicated that they would listen to health advice from their daughters. This analysis suggests that the mother-daughter relationship may be a potential asset for culturally viable, community-based health promotion.

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