Pregnant Womens Perception of Physical Activity During Pregnancy at Primary Health Care Centers in Baghdad City

A descriptive correlational design was used in this study to (1) assess pregnant womens perception of regular physical exercise during pregnancy, (2) find out the association between pregnant womens age, socioeconomic status (SES), some reproductive variables and these womens perception of regular physical exercise during pregnancy, and (3) investigate the differences in pregnant womens perception of regular physical exercise during pregnancy in terms of age, level of education, SES, some reproductive variables groups. A convenience sample of (180) pregnant women who were selected from (13) primary health care centers located in both sides of Baghdad City were recruited to participate in this study. A self-reported questionnaire that includes two parts, the first part includes participants age, socioeconomic status, the second part examines pregnant womens perception of engaging in regular physical exercise during pregnancy. The study results revealed that more than half of participants have somewhat sound perception of physical exercise. Furthermore, there are significant associations between participants socioeconomic status and their perception of physical exercise. Moreover, women of upper high SE class have a sounder perception of regular physical exercise during pregnancy than those who are of upper middle SE class. There is a significant difference in perception of physical exercise among womens SE class groups. The researcher recommends community health nurses to collaborate with other agencies in Iraq to establish campaigns that aim to increase population awareness of the vital role of regular physical exercise during pregnancy.