Health Promoting Behaviors in a Population-based Sample of Middle-aged Women and its Relevant Factors in Yazd, Iran

OBJECTIVES: This study is carried out with the aim of describing the pattern of health-promoting behaviors (HPBs) among middle-aged women and its relevant factors in Iran as a Muslim developing country. METHODS: In a cross-sectional study, 483 middle-aged women were selected using cluster random sampling from Yazd city in Central Iran. An adjusted Persian version of Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II was used for measuring HPBs. The demographic data were collected too. RESULTS: The average score of middle-aged women HPBs was 2.73 ± 0.36 (2.69 ± 2.76, %95). Spiritual growth and physical activity had the highest and the lowest score in HPBs’ dimensions, respectively. HPBs had a positive significant correlation with age (p=0.02) and education level (p=0.001) and a negative significant correlation with number of children (p=0.005). HPBs had a higher level in retired women than employees and housewives. CONCLUSIONS: In spite of a desirable level of HPBs in spiritual growth and interpersonal relationship dimensions among this group, their level of HPBs in physical activity and health responsibility dimensions was undesirable. It means that the feature of health among Iranian middle-aged women in a Muslim developing country is different from the industrialized developed and also the non-Muslim countries; hence, they need a different intervention programs.