Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study
Abstract Health literacy is crucial for women to access and utilize health information effectively, especially during the pivotal stages of pregnancy and early motherhood. This cross-sectional study aimed to explore the relationship between health literacy and fear of childbirth (FOC) among 270 preg...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-11954-3 |
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| author | Sareh Bakouei Hoda Ahmari Tehran Esmat Jafarbegloo Fatemeh Bakouei |
| author_facet | Sareh Bakouei Hoda Ahmari Tehran Esmat Jafarbegloo Fatemeh Bakouei |
| author_sort | Sareh Bakouei |
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| description | Abstract Health literacy is crucial for women to access and utilize health information effectively, especially during the pivotal stages of pregnancy and early motherhood. This cross-sectional study aimed to explore the relationship between health literacy and fear of childbirth (FOC) among 270 pregnant women attending prenatal clinics in Qom, Iran. Health literacy was assessed using the Health Literacy for Iranian Adults questionnaire, while FOC was measured with the Hartman questionnaire. The results indicated that 29.6% of the participants had limited health literacy, with a significant difference in overall health literacy scores between women with FOC (mean score: 72.10 ± 13.68) and those without (mean score: 77.10 ± 14.06, p = 0.011). Multivariable logistic regression revealed the predictor variables for fear of childbirth included health literacy (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.94–0.99, p = 0.009), planned pregnancy (Yes/No) (OR 3.01, 95% CI 1.29–7.01, p = 0.011), and income (sufficient/insufficient) (OR 2.92, 95% CI 1.03–8.27, p = 0.044). These findings highlight the use of effective strategies for regular monitoring of women’s health literacy, as well as targeted interventions to increase health literacy among pregnant women, especially low-income women, which can potentially contribute to improving reproductive decision-making and reducing fear of childbirth. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1ac29f49d55948c5ab368529e6eb772b |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-1ac29f49d55948c5ab368529e6eb772b2025-08-20T04:02:56ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-011511810.1038/s41598-025-11954-3Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional studySareh Bakouei0Hoda Ahmari Tehran1Esmat Jafarbegloo2Fatemeh Bakouei3Faculty of Nursing & Midwifery, Spiritual Health Research Center, Qom University of Medical SciencesFaculty of Medicine, Qom University of Medical SciencesFaculty of Nursing & Midwifery, Spiritual Health Research Center, Qom University of Medical SciencesInfertility and Reproductive Health Research Center, Health Research Institute, Babol University of Medical SciencesAbstract Health literacy is crucial for women to access and utilize health information effectively, especially during the pivotal stages of pregnancy and early motherhood. This cross-sectional study aimed to explore the relationship between health literacy and fear of childbirth (FOC) among 270 pregnant women attending prenatal clinics in Qom, Iran. Health literacy was assessed using the Health Literacy for Iranian Adults questionnaire, while FOC was measured with the Hartman questionnaire. The results indicated that 29.6% of the participants had limited health literacy, with a significant difference in overall health literacy scores between women with FOC (mean score: 72.10 ± 13.68) and those without (mean score: 77.10 ± 14.06, p = 0.011). Multivariable logistic regression revealed the predictor variables for fear of childbirth included health literacy (OR 0.96, 95% CI 0.94–0.99, p = 0.009), planned pregnancy (Yes/No) (OR 3.01, 95% CI 1.29–7.01, p = 0.011), and income (sufficient/insufficient) (OR 2.92, 95% CI 1.03–8.27, p = 0.044). These findings highlight the use of effective strategies for regular monitoring of women’s health literacy, as well as targeted interventions to increase health literacy among pregnant women, especially low-income women, which can potentially contribute to improving reproductive decision-making and reducing fear of childbirth.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-11954-3Health literacyFear of childbirthPregnant womenCross-sectional study |
| spellingShingle | Sareh Bakouei Hoda Ahmari Tehran Esmat Jafarbegloo Fatemeh Bakouei Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study Scientific Reports Health literacy Fear of childbirth Pregnant women Cross-sectional study |
| title | Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full | Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study |
| title_fullStr | Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study |
| title_short | Investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study |
| title_sort | investigating health literacy and its associations with fear of childbirth in pregnant women a cross sectional study |
| topic | Health literacy Fear of childbirth Pregnant women Cross-sectional study |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-11954-3 |
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