Abstract
Background: Despite the fact that tobacco use during pregnancy produces adverse perinatal effects, some women continue to smoke. Health literacy (HL) is essential for health outcomes in adults. However, little is known about HL in pregnant women or postpartum women. The study aimed to analyse the relationship between the degree of HL of women during the early puerperium and tobacco use during pregnancy. Methods: A multicentre, descriptive, cross-sectional study was carried out with women in the early puerperium in a region of eastern Spain, between November 2017 and May 2018. Their HL level was obtained using the Newest Vital Sign (NVS) tool. Multivariate logistic models were adjusted to estimate the magnitude of association with tobacco use in pregnancy. Odds ratios (OR) were estimated with a 95% confidence interval. Results: 193 were included in the total. 29.5% (57) of pregnant women smoked tobacco during pregnancy, with a smoking cessation rate of 70.1% (40) while pregnant. 42.0% (81) of pregnant women had inadequate or limited HL. A low level of HL was strongly associated with tobacco use, adjusted by catchment area and age of first pregnancy (LRT p < 0.001; ROC curve = 0.71, 95% CI: 0.64–0.79). Conclusion: A low HL is associated with tobacco consumption during pregnancy. Whether low HL reflects the wide constellation of already-known socioeconomic, political and commercial determinants of tobacco use, or whether incorporating HL support interventions strengthens tobacco cessation activities in pregnancy, warrants further research. Still, it should be considered as essential to understanding the health disparities related to its consumption.
Highlights
Tobacco use has been identified as the most important cause of preventable death, adversely affecting the cardiovascular and respiratory systems and perinatal health [1]
This study presents the evaluation of Health literacy (HL) in women during the puerperium in Spain, and according to their tobacco consumption
The results suggest that the level of HL is inversely associated with tobacco consumption, as has been observed in other populations [36], but not so much as in pregnant or postpartum women
Summary
Tobacco use has been identified as the most important cause of preventable death, adversely affecting the cardiovascular and respiratory systems and perinatal health [1]. That 1.7% of pregnant women worldwide are smokers. In Europe, it is estimated that 8.1% of the pregnant population smokes, a figure considerably higher than the global average [6]. In Spain, the figures are even more discouraging, ranging between 30–45% of women smoking tobacco in early pregnancy [7,8], around 40% of those usually quit within the first trimester of pregnancy [7]. Despite the fact that tobacco use during pregnancy produces adverse perinatal effects, some women continue to smoke. The study aimed to analyse the relationship between the degree of HL of women during the early puerperium and tobacco use during pregnancy.
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