Table 2.

Pregnancy-related information seeking categories, subcategories, and excerpted examples.

Categories		Number of mentions by participants	Example quotes
Gravida
	Pregnancy taboo	15	“I learned that I can eat shrimp but not crab via the Health Mothers.” (WeChat public account)
	Nutrition during pregnancy	12	“I asked in the WeChat group what vitamins they were supplied.”
	Pregnancy-related complications	10	“I was too frightened of encountering gestational diabetes, and I could not help but search it everywhere…”
	Antenatal care	8	“The schedule of pregnancy check on MeetYou was what I wanted exactly.”
	Pregnancy symptoms	6	“Although the doctor said that intense vomiting is not a problem, I still searched comments from others with similar conditions for comfort.”
	Amusement and sports	6	“Sometimes I just felt bored and browsed other gravida’s posts to see if they had anything interesting happening.”
	Super-cool pregnancy-related goods	3	“I found a comfort pillow on the Little Red Book. It was worth it!”
Fetus
	Fetal development	18	“…It informed me when my baby began to have a heartbeat and could hear me…I followed the app since my pregnancy.”
	Sex of fetus	12	“The doctor did not tell me, I searched clues from other mothers’ experiences.”
	Antenatal training	8	“I played the music in Baby Tree.”
	Baby’s name	7	“I looked into answers about their naming techniques.”
Delivery
	Preparation for delivery	12	“I started to compare the maternity packages on the platform since my seven-month pregnancy.”
	Mode and process of delivery	8	“When I learnt of the term painless labor, I searched it for further details.”
	Delivery stories	4	“I am scared about delivery, and luckily found a lot who were sharing their experiences on MeetYou.”
	Hospital and doctor choices	4	“I looked at many comments online and choose the doctor I favored.”
Postpartum period
	Infant care	8	“I also compared the mother-baby care center on social media…”
	Maternal recovery and sex life	5	“I looked particularly for information on weight loss and muscle exercises.”
	Nutrition during postpartum period	2	“I hardly checked the nutrition and vitamins after childbirth.”