Health-promoting Lifestyle and its Demographic Predictors in Infertile Couples Referred to Infertility Clinic of Tabriz Al-Zahra Hospital, 2013

Introduction: Improving the lifestyle of infertile couples led to the preservation of their performance, increase their quality of life, and reduce health cost. So, the aims of this study were to determine the health-promoting lifestyle and its predictors among infertile couples. Methods: In a cross-sectional, analytical study 322 infertile couples referred to an infertility clinic in Tabriz was participated with convenience sampling method. The demographic and the standard Health Promoting Lifestyle-II (HPLP II) questionnaires were completed by all couples individually. For determining the demographic predictors of health-promoting lifestyle, the multivariate linear regression was used. Results: The mean (standard deviation) score of health-promoting lifestyle in couples was 2.4 (0.4) of the achievable score ranged from 1 to 4. The highest mean score was for nutrition subscale 2.6 (0.5) in both men and women and the lowest mean score was for physical activity subscale in women 2.1(0.5) and men 2.3(0.5) and health responsibility subscale (2.3(0.5) in both men and women. Educational level, cause of infertility, adequacy of income for living expense, and living situation were predictors of health-promoting lifestyle. Conclusion: The results showed that participants do not carry out all health-promoting behaviors, especially physical activity and health responsibility, in an acceptable level. These behaviors have an important role in improving the quality of life, health maintenance, and fertility. Thus, the provision of strategies, including those in accordance with predictors of health-promoting behaviors, is important for improving the health status of infertile couples.