Investigation analysis on environmental factors of pregnant women in Hebei Province

Objective To conduct a comprehensive survey of women in first and second trimester of pregnancy, analyze the geography, age and education levels. To evaluate the indexes of environmental factors related to pregnancy status, so as to provide scientific basis for strengthening primary preventive measures before and during pregnancy, and further reduce the occurrence of birth defects and improve the quality of the birth population.Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted and to extract four urban and four rural survey sites respectively. Women in the early and second trimester of pregnancy were selected to be investigated the education level, living habits, maternal history, disease history, drug history, etc. The blood hemoglobin were tested at the same time.Results Urban women had higher education levels than rural women. The proportion of sedentary, pets, late nights, and partial food in poor living habits is higher. Sedentary, keeping pets, staying up late and partial eating account for a higher proportion of the bad habits.The he proportions of keeping pets, partialeating, sedentary, drinking strong tea/coffee were significantly higher among women in urban areasthan in rural areas. The proportion of poor living habits of pregnant women in the ≤34 years old age group of was significantly higher than that in the ≥ 35 years old age group of However, the habit of drinking strong tea/coffee was significantly higher in the≥35 years old age group than in the ≤34 years old age group. Among the pregnant women with junior high school degree or below, the bad habits of keeping pet and sedentary were significantly higher than the other groups. The incidence of poor maternity history was significantly higher among pregnant women in the ≥ 35 years old age group than in the ≤ 34 years old age group. About 23.22% of women during pregnancy had a history of taking drugs, among them, the medication history of drug taken to protect fetus and thyroxine drugs was significantly higher in urban areas than in rural areas. The proportion of antibiotics taken by pregnant women in the 34 years old age group of was significantly higher than that of the≥35 years old age group. The proportion of pregnant women with bachelor's degree or above taking the drug to protect fetus was significantly higher than that of the other two groups. The highest incidence is constipation and hemorrhoids in the history of diseases. Thyroid disease prevalence was significantly higher in urban than in rural areas. The incidences of hemorrhoids, oral diseases, uterine myoma, hepatitis B, pelvic inflammatory disease, diabetes, constipation, and tuberculosis in pregnant women in the ≥35 years old age group were significantly higher than those of pregnant women in the ≤ 34 years old age group. About 8.71% of pregnant women experience anaemia, of which the prevalence of anaemia among pregnant women in the ≥35 years old age group was significantly higher than that in the ≤ 34 years old age group.Conclusion Women's living and working environments vary according to geographic location, age and level of education. So there are differences in the composition of environmental factors. It suggests us that different areas should be emphasized in primary prevention of birth defects according to different regions, ages, and education levels.