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. 2025 Jul 3;25(1):706.
doi: 10.1186/s12884-025-07628-7.

The relationship between health literacy and exercise self-efficacy in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study

Nasibeh Zerangian  1   2 , Mohammad Ali Kianfard  2   3 , Nooshin Peyman  4   5
Affiliations

The relationship between health literacy and exercise self-efficacy in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study

Nasibeh Zerangian et al. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. .

Abstract

Background and aims: Maternal health is intricately linked with health literacy, which significantly influences pregnant women's ability to access, comprehend, and utilize health-related information. Despite its critical role, a substantial proportion of pregnant women exhibit low health literacy, precipitating considerable challenges in health management and potentially compromising pregnancy outcomes. So, this study seeks to elucidate the relationship between health literacy and exercise self-efficacy among pregnant women, to inform evidence-based interventions aimed at enhancing maternal health outcomes.

Methods: This analytical, cross-sectional research was conducted on 301 pregnant women referred to healthcare centers in Mashhad, Iran, in 2023. A multistage cluster sampling method was used. Data were collected using a socio-demographic checklist and standardized questionnaires for health literacy and exercise self-efficacy in pregnant women, which the study participants completed. Data analysis was performed using independent t-tests, Mann-Whitney, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Kruskal-Wallis, one-way ANOVA, Spearman correlation, and univariate and multiple linear regression analysis in SPSS version 23.

Results: The mean and standard deviation of health literacy and exercise self-efficacy were 60.61 ± 17.81(0-100) and 56.09 ± 17.02(0-100), respectively. health literacy had a positive and significant relationship with exercise self-efficacy(r = 0.33, P < 0.05). Among the participants, 20.9% had good health literacy, 57.5% had moderate health literacy, and 21.6% had poor health literacy. Additionally, 16.6% of participants reported good exercise self-efficacy, 50.8% reported moderate exercise self-efficacy, and 32.6% reported poor exercise self-efficacy.

Conclusion: There is a significant positive relationship between health literacy and exercise self-efficacy among pregnant women. Therefore, enhancing mothers' health literacy can be an important step in promoting physical activity and healthy behaviors during pregnancy.

Keywords: Exercise self-efficacy; Health literacy; Physical activity; Pregnant women.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: This study was conducted with permission from the Ethics Committee for Human Research at Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (Code: IR.MUMS.FHMPM.REC.1402.085) and in accordance with the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. All participants were informed about the study’s objectives and gave their informed verbal consent prior to participation. They were assured that their responses would remain confidential, and each participant was assigned a unique code to protect their identity. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

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