Effectiveness of mother and daughter interventions targeting physical activity, fitness, nutrition and adiposity: A systematic review

Physical inactivity and poor dietary habits in women pose a clear public health burden. Mothers are generally the main female role model for daughters, therefore, targeting intergenerational females simultaneously may be a novel approach. However, the effectiveness of this approach to improve physical activity, fitness, nutrition and adiposity has not been systematically examined. To assess the effectiveness of physical activity, fitness and nutrition interventions targeting mothers and their daughters. PubMed, Psychinfo, EMBASE, Ovid Medline, SCOPUS, CINAHL, Sportdiscus and Informit were searched for English language studies (1980–2015). Randomized controlled trials (RCTS), non-randomized experimental trials and pre-post studies of physical activity, fitness, nutrition and adiposity interventions targeting mothers and daughters were eligible if they reported changes in physical activity, fitness, dietary intake or adiposity. Data were extracted using a standardized template and checked by a second author. 3577 articles were screened and 14 unique studies (7 RCTs, 1 pseudo-randomized, 1 non-randomized, 5 pre-post) met the inclusion criteria. The majority of studies were conducted in the US (n=11) and most were limited by methodological concerns. Of the RCTs that targeted each outcome exclusively, ≤20%, ≤20% ≤21% and 0% were successful for improving physical activity, fitness, nutrition and adiposity respectively. Overall, evidence for the effectiveness of mother-daughter interventions to improve physical activity, fitness, nutrition and adiposity is inconclusive. The diversity of study designs, exposures and outcomes used, along with methodological weaknesses means that well-designed and reported RCTs are warranted. •Successful RCTs aiming to improve behaviors in participants targeted multiple behaviors.•Only a limited number of interventions have been designed to exclusively target mothers and daughters.•Many studies were limited by methodological concerns and overall risk of bias was high.•Evidence is currently inconclusive with few studies achieving positive outcomes.•Higher quality, rigorous trials testing lifestyle interventions for females are needed.