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The present cross-sectional research was conducted on 245 adolescents selected through a multi-stratified sampling method. The data collection instrument was the risky behavior scale (YRBSS). The collected data were statistically analyzed via SPSS ver19. Such indices as mean, standard deviation, min and max scores were used as descriptive statistics. The present findings showed that 17 subjects (6.9%) had carried cold weapons with them at least once before; 22 subjects (15.17%) had experienced drug consumption (opium and hash) at least; 52 subjects (21.3%) consumed alcohol; 45 (out of 108) (41.66%) had sexual affairs with the opposite sex and 108 (44.1%) experienced smoking. Certain measures can be taken to prevent and reduce the rate of risky behaviors: closer and stronger family ties between parents and teenagers, emphasis on positive examples set by peers, establishment of moral values, provision of sport facilities and public welfare, special attention to the key role of schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Investigate the health literacy of pregnant women in the south of Iran. Materials and methods: The present descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 775 pregnant women in the south of Iran (including Boushehr, Ahvaz, Zahedan and Bandar Abbas cities) through the clustering sample selection method. The data were collected through the Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults: TOFHLA, and were analyzed statistically via SPSS 16 through independent-sample t-test and ANOVA. Results: The average age of the subjects was 31.89 ± 7.54 years. The results indicated that 15.5% of the subjects had an inadequate level of health literacy; 41.7% had a border-line level of health literacy, and 42.8% had an adequate level of literacy. Significant correlations were found between each of these variables and the subjects' level of health literacy: education, age, occupation and care provision during pregnancy (p ˂ 0.05). The highest mean score of health literacy belonged to Ahvaz while the lowest belonged to Boushehr. Conclusion: According to the results, the health literacy level of pregnant women in the target geographical areas showed to be inadequate or on a border-line. Moreover, subjects' education, age and occupation showed to be significantly correlated with health literacy. Therefore, promoting pregnant women's health literacy through simplifying health-related information, use of audio-visual media, improving communicative skills among the health staff and mothers can be effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To anticipate the type of childbirth according to the health belief model. Materials and methods: The present cross-sectional research was conducted on 222 primiparous women visiting the healthcare center in Khorram Abad. A combination of simple randomization and clustering was used to do the sampling. The data collection instrument was a validated four-part questionnaire the first part of which contained demographic information. The second part was comprised of awareness questions while the third dealt with the constructs of the health belief model. The final part consisted of the behavioral intention derived from the logical action theory. SPSS 16 was used to statistically analyze the data and the significance level was set at p = 0.05. Results: The average age of the participants was 27.40 ± 6.07 years. Intention to go for a vaginal birth showed to be significantly correlated with awareness, perceived sensitivity, intensity, barriers and benefits (p = 0.001) as well as self-efficacy (p = 0.025). The best predictor of the type of childbirth turned out to be the perceived barriers (OR = 1.153, p = 0.001) and only then awareness (OR = 1.108, p = 0.001). Conclusion: Strategies to remove the barriers of preferring vaginal childbirth, raising women's awareness of the side effects of C-section and the benefits of vaginal birth, strategies to enhance women's beliefs in their capability of natural childbirth can be used to reduce the prevalence of unnecessary C-sections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to develop and rigorously evaluate the Test of Oral Health Literacy in Adults (TOHLA) for the Iranian population, addressing the limitations of existing oral health literacy (OHL) measurement instruments and contributing to the literature on OHL assessment. The development of the TOHLA involved a qualitative approach, which included a comprehensive literature review and semi-structured interviews with a panel of 15 experts from diverse fields and 22 Iranian adults aged 18 to 64 years. The instrument was designed with 48 items categorized into four domains: cognitive skill, communication skill, media skill, and functional skill. Content validity was established through expert input and content validation indices. Construct validity was supported by factor analysis, and concurrent validity was assessed by comparing TOHLA scores with demographic variables. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability analyses were performed to assess the instrument's reliability. The psychometric evaluation of the TOHLA demonstrated strong content validity, construct validity, concurrent validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability. The instrument exhibited a high level of internal consistency, with a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.81 for the entire scale. Test-retest reliability was satisfactory, with an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of 0.83. Concurrent validity analysis showed statistically significant associations between OHL scores and demographic variables, supporting the instrument's overall performance. The TOHLA overcomes the weaknesses observed in existing instruments and offers a comprehensive tool with strong psychometric properties to assess the OHL of the Iranian adult population. Researchers, policymakers, and healthcare providers can utilize the TOHLA to address oral health challenges and enhance overall oral health outcomes among Iranian adults.

Background: Preterm birth (PTB) is one of the most important factors that increase the risk of chronic diseases and postpartum death in infants. The aim of this study was to determine the maternal factors that affect the birth of preterm infants in the city of Bandar Abbas., Materials and Methods: This is a case-control study that was performed on 400 preterm infants. Sampling was done by a simple method, and information was gathered by interviewing the mothers and their medical records. Data were collected by SPSS software version 16. To compare risk factors in the two groups, conditional logistic regression was used, and P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant., Results: Results showed that factors such as type of delivery (odds ratio [OR] = 3.584, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.981-6.485), preeclampsia (OR = 2.688, 95% CI: 1.164-6.207), history of PTB (OR = 4.171, 95% CI: 1.483-11.728), premature rupture of membranes (OR = 3.273, 95% CI: 1.745-6.137), care during prenatal (OR = 0.334, 95% CI: 0.159-0.701), placental abruption (OR = 3.209, 95% CI: 1.209-8.519), placenta previa (OR = 9.333, 95% CI: 2.086-41.770), and cervical insufficiency (OR = 11, 95% CI: 1.381-87.641) were independent risk factors of preterm infant birth., Conclusions: The PTB risk is higher for women with cervical insufficiency, history of placenta previa, and history of preterm. Early recognition and management of these high-risk conditions among pregnant women may lead to a reduction in PTB rates., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2021 Journal of Education and Health Promotion.)

Background: Approximately one third of the food produced in the world for human consumption was wasted., Objectives: This study aimed to determine the effect of intervention on behavior of food consumption and waste production in the restaurants of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences., Materials and Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, 233 students of public health school were selected as intervention group, and 233 students of medical school were selected as control group. The food wastage was weighed in both "Sabz" and "Medical" restaurants for a week. Based on training needs of the samples, teaching methods and programs were implemented in the intervention group for a month. The clients of both restaurants were followed 4 weeks after the intervention. The food waste was weighed after 4 weeks. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 16 and statistical tests (Wilcoxon, Chi-squared, McNemar, and Mann-Whitney tests)., Results: The results obtained from Wilcoxon test showed that, the means of awareness, attitude, and behavior were significantly improved after the intervention in the intervention and control groups ( P < 0.001). After the intervention, according to the number of served foods, it was expected that the weight of food wastage to be 341.37 kg/week, but this figure was reduced to 224.98 kg/week after the intervention., Conclusions: This study has confirmed the effectiveness of implementation of interventions on enhancement of knowledge, attitude, and behavior of people about consumption of food and amount of wastage. The authors suggest that to investigate sustainability of effect of intervention on behavior of food consumption and wastage production, this study could be implemented in different and longer time intervals after the end of project., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2020 Journal of Education and Health Promotion.)

Background: A proper measurement instrument is selected based on the suggested use of the instrument, the target concept of measurement, and features of measurement (e.g. internal consistency, reproducibility, content and construct validity, responsiveness, and interpretability). Concerning the design and features of measurement, there are not any adequately specific standards for instrumentation to measure oral health literacy (OHL). The present study proposes a protocol that attempts to fill this gap by introducing the psychometrics of a standard questionnaire which measures OHL., Materials and Methods: The present research employs a methodological design and is carried out in Tehran, with data collected through interviews that are held face to face. The data collection procedure involves a review of the related literature, cognitive interviews, fuzzy Delphi Method, and focal groups with participants with OHL work experience for item generation. The target participants of this research are the Iranian adult population and experts working professionally in different health domains. For qualitative data analysis, the content analysis strategy and in the instrument Psychometrics COSMIN checklist will use., Conclusions: Achievement of the present research will be used to evaluate the capability of the Iranian adult population in searching, processing, and deciding on healthcare services. This instrument will focus on evaluating both clinical and nonclinical settings. The present research can vastly improve our knowledge of the state of OHL in the Iranian adult population., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2020 Journal of Education and Health Promotion.)

Background: Insufficient physical activity is a global health-care problem and is considered an independent risk factor for chronic diseases. The present research aimed to explore the effect of an educational intervention based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and stages of change on promoting women's physical activity., Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental research was conducted on 68 women who voluntarily visited the health-care centers of Mashhad. They were selected by randomized multistratified sampling method and were divided into two groups of intervention ( n = 34) and control ( n = 34). The data collection tools included a demographic information questionnaire, a questionnaire based on the TPB and stages of change, and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. The data were statistically analyzed by SPSS software version 16 using descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (paired t -test, correlation coefficient, and covariance). The significance level of P < 0.05 was considered in this study., Results: No statistically significant difference was found between the intervention and control groups before the intervention in terms of the scores of the TPB constructs and physical activity ( P > 0.05). However, after the educational intervention, a significant difference was observed in the mean scores of TPB constructs and physical activity ( P < 0.05). In addition, no statistically significant difference was found in the stages of change between the two groups after the intervention., Conclusions: The results of this study pointed to the effectiveness of educational intervention and the necessity to use educational interventions to help adopt preventive behaviors. Therefore, the use of well-established educational models rather than conventional methods is recommended., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2019 Journal of Education and Health Promotion.)

Background: Mortality and disability rates were reported to be respectively 2-3 and 5-10 times higher in C-sections compared to Vaginal delivery., Objectives: This study was aimed to explore the factors involved in selecting the birth type among primiparous women., Methods: The present cross-sectional research was conducted on 220 primiparous women, who visited the health-care centers of Bandar Abbas. They were recruited in their first trimester of pregnancy with a simple randomized clustering method. Data were collected in a researcher-designed questionnaire. Its validity was confirmed by a panel of experts and reliability was tested and approved through the test-retest method. Mean, standard deviation, independent sample t -test, and Chi-squared tests for data analysis were done by SPSS 16. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant., Results: The mean age of the participants was 27.40 ± 6.07 years. The main barriers to the choice of vaginal delivery were the fear of pain and fear of vaginal area tears and ruptures, fear of injury to fetus, and doctor's recommendation. A statistically significant correlation was observed between the age, education, employment, income, awareness, and the reasons for preferring surgical childbirth., Conclusions: To reduce the rate of unnecessary cesarean sections (C-section), the following recommendations are suggested: Reducing fear of pain in expectant mothers, modifying wrong beliefs about the culture of natural childbirth, increasing awareness of fewer adverse effects of vaginal delivery including the vaginal tears if the mother abides by all midwife(s) instructions during the delivery procedure, providing educational courses for the necessary movements during the delivery, decreasing surgeons' payment for C-section, and increasing payment for natural childbirth and implementing barriers for optional delivery to reduce the C-section., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest.

Background: Thalassemic disorders are the most prevalent monogenic hereditary diseases around the world caused by decreased and altered synthesis or agenesis in one or more globin chains. Families who have a child with thalassemia major face a myriad of significant problems. Hormozgan province ranks second with thalassemic patients in Iran. Therefore, current research is aimed to analyze the reproductive behavior of such families in the southern province of Iran., Methods: In this descriptive study 190 mothers of patients suffering from thalassemia major were included. The reproductive behavior of mothers was investigated by a questionnaire regarding the number of thalassemic infants born after their first child with thalassemia major., Results: About 23% of these mothers had more than 1 child with major thalassemia. The findings showed that the reasons for conception among these mothers were to have a healthy child (64.2%) and to have a boy (20%). In about 92.6% of mothers CVS test was not performed., Conclusion: This study showed that awaring mothers and families regarding the prevention of birth of afflicted infants and provision of accessible diagnostic facilities can reduce the number of children with thalassemia major.