Purpose:

To clarify the psychological health and lifestyle behaviors of women in early pregnancy.

Method:

A questionnaire survey was conducted among 64 women in early pregnancy who obtained maternal and child health handbooks at eight facilities in Takamatsu City.

The respondents were divided into two groups based on their scores on the Japanese version of the General Health Questionnaire 12-item version (GHQ12). Differences in beliefs about lifestyle behaviors between the two groups were analyzed using χ² or Fisher's exact tests. The Mann-Whitney U test was performed to examine the difference in the number of items improved between the two groups. Kruskal-Wallis and Bonferroni's multiple comparison tests were performed to compare the number of items indicating improvement with the participants' Body Mass Index (BMI) profile.

Results:

"Weight control" was the most common improvement item, followed by "exercise habit," "regular life," and "eating staple food along with main and side dishes."

A significant relationship was not identified between pre-pregnancy lifestyle behaviors, improvement items, the number of improvement items, and GHQ12 scores. The two GHQ12 groups were significantly different in terms of BMI profile, pregnancy-related concerns, and having a mild health condition. Additionally, pregnant women with obesity had more improvement items compared to those with normal weight. In the free description section, the child&s health was a frequent concern; the other concerns were related to having a mild health condition, work-family life balance, and physical problems.

Conclusion:

The participants' GHQ12 scores were associated with BMI, pregnancy-related concerns, and having a mild health condition. The findings highlight that midwives must consider the pregnant women's concerns, body size, and mild health conditions, which can affect the their psychological health from the early stages of pregnancy, when resolving their individual concerns.

Objectives: To examine maternal factors related to cervical cancer screening behavior among female university students.

Method: A self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted on fourth-year female university students and their mothers. Factors predicted to be related to daughter's screening behavior were analyzed using the χ² test and Mann-Whitney U test. The Ethics Committee of the Kagawa University School of Medicine approved this study.

Result: We analyzed 59 pairs. Mothers' recommendations strongly influenced daughters' cervical cancer screening behavior. Mothers who recommended screening provided more right answers about cervical cancer. For the items "past conflict/conflict" and "mother's control" of the mother-daughter relationship scale, the factor scores of the group whose mothers did not recommend screening were higher than those of the recommended screening group. For the "confidence in mother" scale item, the factor scores of the non-recommended group were lower than those of the recommended group. These results did not reach statistical significance. Additionally, for the two knowledge queries, the group in which mothers and daughters agreed on their answers had a significantly lower score for "mother&s control" than the inconsistent group.

Discussion: Adolescent women's cervical cancer screening behavior is strongly influenced by maternal recommendations. Although the mother's knowledge is not directly related to her daughter&s screening behavior, it may associate the behavior of recommending screening with her daughter, suggesting the importance of disseminating knowledge to the mother generation. It was indicated that building a good mother-daughter relationship and sharing correct knowledge may promote cervical cancer screening among adolescent women.

Conclusion: The encouragement of cervical cancer screening among female university students is related to maternal recommendations. Promoting a good mother-daughter relationship and sharing appropriate knowledge is vital.