Early-life maternal attachment and risky health behaviours in adolescence: findings from the United Kingdom Millennium Cohort Study.

Background: Early uptake of multiple risky behaviours during adolescence, such as substance use, antisocial and sexual behaviours, can lead to poor health outcomes without timely interventions. This study investigated how early-life maternal attachment, or emotional bonds between mothers and infants, influenced later risky behaviours in adolescence alongside other potential explanatory pathways using the United Kingdom Millennium Cohort Study.

Methods: Total maternal attachment scores measured at 9 months using the Condon (1998) Maternal Postnatal Attachment Scale compared higher and lower attachment, where mothers in the lowest 10th percentile represented lower attachment.