Physical activity for healthy pregnancy among Iranian women: Perception of facilities versus perceived barriers
نویسندگان
1 Departments of Midwifery and Reproductive Health, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences
2 Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
3
doi
چکیده
BACKGROUND: Regular physical activity during preconception period has beneficial effectson the health of women during conception and the identification of factors associated with it isan effective factor for improving the behavior. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate therelationship between the physical activity and health belief model (HBM) constructs (perceivedsusceptibility/severity, barriers, and self‑efficacy) as intrapersonal factors among women undergoingpreconception care.METHODS: In this cross‑sectional study, 110 women who were undergoing preconception care werecarried out. Moreover, health belief constructs and attitude toward physical activity were assessedthrough the use of researcher‑made questionnaire. In addition, the duration of physical activity withmoderate/vigorous intensity was evaluated utilizing a long form of the International Physical ActivityQuestionnaire.RESULTS: The results showed that although there was a relationship between the all health beliefconstructs and attitude toward physical activity and the duration of leisure physical activities carriedout during (P < 0.05), but using the linear regression test showed that only perceived barriers,independent from other variables, had a significant inverse correlation with this type of activities(β = −0.27, P = 0.02).CONCLUSION: The findings of this study showed that among the constructs of theHBM, perceivedbarriers are the most important predictor of physical activity in women during the preconceptionperiod and emphasize the need to design possible means to promote physical activity to removebarriers to effective physical activity.
