Maternal Health Literacy, Health information‐seeking Behavior and Pregnancy Outcomes Among Iranian Pregnant Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Background: Maternal health literacy (MHL) and health information-seeking behavior (HISB) could impact maternal health and pregnancy outcomes. Purpose and Research Design: This cross-sectional study investigated MHL, HISBs, and pregnancy outcomes in Iranian pregnant women. This study was also aimed to determine the predictors of MHL and pregnancy outcomes. Study smple and Data Collection: In this study, 337 randomly selected postpartum women completed three questionnaires, including a demographics form, an obstetrics history checklist, and the Maternal Health Literacy and Pregnancy Outcome Questionnaire (MHLAPQ). Results: The mean MHL and pregnancy outcome scores were 60.80 ± 9.91 and 49.88 ± 5.69, respectively. Of the participants, 56% adopted both formal and informal HISB. Education and internet HISB was associated with the odds of being in the group with higher MHL. Participants with high MHL had more than twice higher odds for better pregnancy outcomes (OR = 2.25,  p < 0.004). Conclusions: Continued efforts are required to make health information sources more accessible to pregnant women to improve their health literacy and pregnancy outcomes.