Investigating Health Promotion Behaviors of Pregnant Women Referring to Comprehensive Health Services Centers of Bushehr in 2016

Introduction: Health-promoting behaviors and healthy behaviors are the healing factors for the promotion of health in pregnant women. The purpose of this study was to determine the health promotion behaviors in pregnant women referring to the comprehensive health centers in Bushehr (the capital city of Bushehr Province, Iran) in 2016. Methods: In this descriptive study, 385 pregnant women referring to the comprehensive health centers were selected by convenience sampling. The data collection tool was a questionnaire consisting of two parts: the first part was related to demographic questions and the second part of the questionnaire was related to health promotion behaviors (Health Promotion Lifestyle Profile II) HPLP II which includes 52 questions. After confirming the validity and reliability of the tool, the data were analyzed through descriptive statistics, independent t-test, Pearson correlation, and one-way ANOVA. Results: The mean score of health promotion behaviors was desirable. Also, among dimensions of health promotion behaviors, the area of health accountability with the mean and standard deviation of (38.25 ± 5.78) had the highest score, and the range of physical activity with the mean and standard deviation of (16.24 ± 5.47) had the lowest score. The age (being under 25 years old) and collegiate education level, among the demographic variables, had a significant relationship with healthpromoting behaviors (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The result of the study indicated a moderate level of health promotion behaviors in women participating in the present study. Therefore, it is necessary to pay more attention to the areas of physical activity, stress management, and social relationships.