The Sociodemographic Determinants of Health Literacy in the Ethnic Hungarian Mothers of Young Children in Eastern Europe

Parental health literacy is a decisive factor for child health and quality of life. Children of parents with limited health literacy are at increased risk of illness and longer recovery periods. The research at the Quality of Life Research Centre is aimed at studying the health literacy of ethnic Hungarian mothers in Eastern Europe (Hungary, Slovakia, Romania) as well as at assessing its socioeconomic and demographic antecedents. The sample size is 894 mothers. Our standardized online questionnaire includes the HLS-EU-16 and the BHLS questions, with the latter intended to screen for inadequate health literacy. Predictors of health literacy in mothers are socioeconomic status, age and partnership status. A key finding is the improvement of health literacy with age. Assessing the association of partnership status and health literacy is a novelty in this region. Our analysis reinforces the role of socioeconomic capital, widely recognized to be associated with health literacy in general and with parental health literacy in particular. Results indicate the necessity of improving caregiver health literacy with a range of health promotional activities in Eastern Europe, especially among mothers with low socioeconomic status. The hardships of young mothers and single mothers should also be considered in this respect.