Unsupervised clustering analysis of comprehensive health status and its influencing factors on women of childbearing age: a cross-sectional study from a province in central China

BACKGROUND: Most previous studies on women of childbearing age have focused on reproductive health and fertility intentions, and evidence regarding the comprehensive health status of women of childbearing age is limited. This study aimed to comprehensively examine the health status of women of childbearing age through a multi-method and multi-indicator evaluation, analyze the factors that influence their overall health, and provide sound recommendations for the improvement and promotion of healthy behaviors. METHODS: Data on women of childbearing age living in Shanxi Province were collected between September 2021 and January 2022 through online and offline surveys. The k-means algorithm was used to assess health-related patterns in women, and multivariate nonconditional logistic regression was used to assess the influencing factors of women’s overall health. RESULTS: In total, 1,258 of 2,925 (43%) participants were classified as having a good health status in all five domains of the three health dimensions: quality of life, mental health, and illness. Multivariate logistic regression showed that education level, gynecological examination status, health status of family members, access to medical treatment, age, cooking preferences, diet, social support, hand washing habits, attitude toward breast cancer prevention, and awareness of reproductive health were significantly associated with different health patterns. CONCLUSIONS: The comprehensive health status of women of childbearing age in Shanxi Province is generally good; however, a large proportion of women with deficiencies in some dimensions remains. Since lifestyle greatly impacts women’s health, health education on lifestyle and health-related issues should be strengthened. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-023-17096-3.