Investigation and analysis of college students’ fertility awareness

Abstract

Objective To understand the current situation of college students’fertility awareness in Hunan province, then provide the basis for the related government departments and universities to develop sexual education programs. Methods Using stratified random sampling method, 1 100 college students from three comprehensive universities in Hunan province were surveyed with fertility awareness questionnaire which mainly includes the fertility desire, the fertility awareness, the source of fertility knowledge and the behavior choice under the condition of infertility. Results The average recovery rate was 93%, and the expected average ages of college students when they have the first and last child were (28.6±1.8) years old and (35.1±3.8) years old. About 86.4% college students overestimate the age when fertility begins to decline, 74.3% college students overestimate the success rate of in vitro fertilization (IVF), 90% college students want to have 1-2 children in the future, 5% college students don’t want to have children in the future; for the importance of having children, college students give 8 points (range from 0 to 10); 57% college students get fertility knowledge through the internet. Conclusion Based on the misunderstanding of women’s fertility, the decision to delay childbearing may increase the risk of infertility in the future, and result in involuntary absence of children. Key words: Fertility awareness; Fertility; Delayed childbearing; In vitrofertilization (IVF); College students