Abstract

Background: There is a paucity of research on knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding the harms of exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) among pregnant women. Objective: This study, therefore, aimed to examine the knowledge, attitude, and avoidance behavior towards ETS exposure at home among Iranian pregnant women.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 150 non-smoking pregnant women with smoking husbands in Urmia, Iran, in 2019. The participants were selected through a multi-stage process. The data were collected using a researcher-made questionnaire that measured demographic data, knowledge, attitude, and behaviors in avoiding ETS. The data were analyzed using Pearson- ’s correlation coefficient, t-test, and ANOVA by SPSS-16 at a significance level of 0.05.

Results: The majority of participants (54.7%) had sufficient knowledge about ETS. The women's attitude and efforts to prevent ETS exposure were moderate in 50% and 60% of the cases, respectively. The participants’ knowledge had a significant association with their level of education, employment status, and family income (P<0.05). Knowledge had a significant and positive relationship with attitude (P=0.001, r=0.280) and efforts to prevent ETS exposure (P<0.001, r=0.403).

Conclusion: Knowledge about ETS was significantly correlated with attitude and avoidance behavior of ETS exposure. Therefore, pregnancy care providers to improve the attitude and practice of pregnant women should implement interventional programs. Public health initiatives are also needed to empower women and encourage them to reduce ETS exposure.

Keywords: Knowledge, attitude, behavior, pregnancy, environmental tobacco smoke pollution, secondhand smoke.