Influence of Perceived Benefits and Barriers on Pregnant Women's Intention to Adhere to a Healthy Diet: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objective: This study aims to examine the influence of perceived benefits and barriers on pregnant women's behavioral intention to adhere to a healthy diet and to identify significant differences in behavioral intention to adhere to a healthy diet among groups based on age, level of education, family monthly income, and socioeconomic class. Methods and Materials: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was employed. A non-probability (purposive) sample of 390 pregnant women from eight primary healthcare centers in Baqubah City was selected to participate in the study. Data were collected using a self-report instrument that included sociodemographic data of pregnant women, a perceived benefit scale, a perceived barriers scale, and a behavioral intention to adhere to a healthy diet scale. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26. Findings: The study results reveal that perceived benefits statistically positively predict pregnant women’s behavioral intention to adhere to a pregnancy-healthy diet (p = 0.000). Perceived barriers statistically significantly inversely predict pregnant women’s behavioral intention to adhere to a pregnancy-healthy diet (p = 0.000). There are statistically significant differences in behavioral intention regarding adherence to a healthy diet among age, level of education, and family socioeconomic class groups (p-value = .002, .000, .025), respectively. On the other hand, there was no statistically significant difference in behavioral intention regarding adherence to a healthy diet among family monthly income groups (p-value = .095). Conclusion: It can be concluded that perceived benefits and barriers influence pregnant women's behavioral intention in adherence to a healthy diet. The socio-demographic characteristics play a crucial role in shaping the dietary behaviors of pregnant women.