The rural area residents suffered more from low functional health literacy, compared with their urban counterparts. Health literacy as a determinant of health and social welfare should be focused on with more detail by health decision-makers.

Background: Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed tumorous cancer and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women worldwide. This study aimed to qualitatively explore the barriers to mammography adoption among Iranian women. Methods: This study is a qualitative component of a large research project on exploratory sequential mixed method design, utilizing conventional content analysis. In total, 24 participants were selected from among women who had participated in the first phase of the study. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews. Results: Five main themes were extracted, consisting of unawareness of mammography, fear control, priority of mammography needs, inadequate competency of mammography centers, and a sense of losing family support. Conclusion: Different perceived barriers within various levels (individual, intrapersonal, health systems, and community) play influential roles in women's decisions to participate in breast cancer screening program, which indicates the cultural aspect of perceived barriers in different communities and countries. The study provides the basis for intervention planning in this regard.

Background and Objectives: Health promoting behaviors are crucial to the health of pregnant women and their children. The present study was conducted to assess health promoting behaviors in pregnant women admitted to Imam Khomeini Hospital of Saqqez. Materials and Methods: The present descriptive analytical study was conducted on 181 pregnant women selected through convenience sampling. The data collection tool used in the study was a questionnaire containing two parts: a section on the subjects' demographic details, and another section for the Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLP II). Data were analyzed in SPSS-21 using descriptive (frequency percentage) and inferential statistics, such as the independent t-test, the Pearson correlation test and the one-way ANOVA. Results: Based on the findings of the study, the highest scores of health promoting behaviors obtained were in the domain of spiritual growth and the lowest in the domain of physical activity. The mean overall score of health promoting behaviors was desirable. The only demographic variable found to have a significant relationship with health promoting behaviors was occupation (P<0.032). Conclusion: The results obtained indicate desirable levels of health promoting behaviors in these pregnant women. Other domains of health such as physical activity, stress management and accountability are recommended to be further emphasized. Future studies are encouraged to be conducted on other ethnicities and with larger sample sizes.

Our aim in this cross-sectional study was to investigate the predictors of the stages of change in mammography adoption (MA) based on Health Belief Model among Iranian women. Through multistage cluster sampling, we recruited and interviewed 1131 women older than 40. After statistical adjustment for other risk factors, perceived barriers (OR D 0.84, 95% CI D .81-.87) and benefits (OR D 1.17, 95% CI D 1.11-1.24) were significant predictors for MA. Majority of the women were in the pre-contemplation and contemplation stages of change for MA. Our findings are informative for the development of targeted interventions to foster MA among women.

AIM:The aim of this study was to investigate the mother-father differences in Postnatal Psychological Distress (PPD) and its determinants among the parents with 8-weeks old children.MATERIALS AND METHODS:In this cross-sectional study, applying simple random sampling, 306 postnatal parents with an 8-weeks old infant in Saqqez County, Iran, were invited to answer the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28) items through the telephone interview. Fifty-eight subjects declined to participate in the study (Response Rate = 81.04%). The data were analysed using the SPSS Statistics v. 21.RESULTS:About 16.9% of all the parents had PPD. The difference in the prevalence of PPD in three dimensions between the two groups were statistically significant (p < 0.01): social dysfunction (25.8% for fathers vs. 5.6% for mothers), somatic disorders (21% for fathers vs. 7.3% for mothers), and anxiety (21% for fathers vs. 6.5% for mothers). The mode of delivery of the mothers and the level of education, the number of children, monthly income, and being consent with pregnancy among the fathers were significant predictors for PPD.CONCLUSION:The level of PPD was more prevalent among the new fathers compared to the new mothers. Among the fathers, but not the mothers, socioeconomic characteristics were contributed to PPD. Considering the differences in risk factors for maternal and paternal PPD, our findings may help family health care providers and policymakers in designing gender-specific intervention programs and diagnosis tools aimed at PPD prevention among new parents.