Table 1.
Sociodemographic characteristics across reproductive life stages (n = 2492).
| Pre-Pregnancy (n = 880) |
Pregnancy (n = 117) |
Postpartum (n = 1495) |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| n (%) a | n (%) a | n (%) a | |
| Age, mean (SD) | 31.2 ± 8.4 | 29.3 ± 5.3 | 33.6 ± 8.7 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 25.4 ± 6.21 | NA | 26.2 ± 5.61 |
| BMI (WHO categories) | |||
| Under/normal weight (<25 kg/m2) | 412 (60.3) | NA | 639 (52.3) |
| Overweight (25–<30 kg/m2) | 180 (20.7) | NA | 336 (25.4) |
| Obese (≥30 kg/m2) | 163 (19.3 | NA | 317 (22.3) |
| Dieting | |||
| Not currently on diet | 132 (13.6) | 1 (0.18) | 242 (16.6) |
| Currently on diet | 748 (86.4) | 116 (99.8) | 1253 (85.1) |
| Country of birth | |||
| Australia | 645 (64.8) | 87 (66.7) | 1113 (74.9) |
| English speaking countries | 80 (10.7) | 7 (9.7) | 145 (9.8) |
| Others | 155 (24.5) | 23 (15.3) | 237 (15.3) |
| Remoteness area | |||
| Major cities | 596 (79.4) | 67 (61.7) | 972 (72.6) |
| Inner regional | 150 (14.1) | 26 (22.4) | 286 (18.2) |
| Other | 134 (6.50) | 24 (15.9) | 237 (9.16) |
| Marital status | |||
| Married | 313 (38.6) | 83 (69.6) | 880 (52.2) |
| Not married | 567 (61.4) | 34 (30.4) | 615 (47.8) |
| Non-school educational level | |||
| Bachelor/Graduate diploma | 362 (42.0) | 41 (33.8) | 447 (29.4) |
| Certificates/Advanced diploma | 276 (33.3) | 37 (31.9) | 523 (35.7) |
| No non-school qualification | 232 (24.7) | 39 (34.3) | 514 (35.0) |
| Household income b | |||
| Q1 (lowest) | 72 (8.21) | 17 (17.4) | 260 (14.0) |
| Q2 | 97 (15.2) | 15 (13.0) | 265 (17.2) |
| Q3 | 127 (17.0) | 25 (25.4) | 297 (21.9) |
| Q4 | 242 (28.3) | 27 (23.3) | 301 (24.0) |
| Q5 (highest) | 261 (31.4) | 28 (20.9) | 216 (22.8) |
| Occupation | |||
| Professional | 320 (34.2) | 37 (29.6) | 369 (26.3) |
| Assoc. Professional | 296 (33.0) | 30 (24.0) | 474 (33.8) |
| Clerical trade | 135 (16.2) | 7 (7.94) | 177 (13.6) |
| Other | 129 (16.5) | 40 (38.5) | 475 (26.3) |
| SEIFA quintile | |||
| Q1 (lowest) | 151 (15.0) | 18 (18.6) | 277 (18.6) |
| Q2 | 162 (18.4) | 36 (25.2) | 274 (17.6) |
| Q3 | 176 (23.7) | 20 (14.7) | 316 (21.6) |
| Q4 | 158 (20.5) | 21 (26.0) | 260 (16.9) |
| Q5 (highest) | 233 (22.3) | 22 (15.4) | 368 (25.4) |
| Smoking status | |||
| Current smoker | 201 (23.3) | 12 (9.5) | 295 (16.3) |
| Ex-smoker | 169 (18.2) | 42 (35.0) | 380 (23.8) |
| Never smoked | 510 (58.6) | 68 (55.6) | 820 (60.3) |
| Self-assessed health | |||
| Excellent/very good/good | 789 (90.0) | 111 (96.0) | 1341 (90.6) |
| Fair/poor | 91 (10.0) | 6 (4.0) | 154 (9.4) |
a Weighted percentage (replicate weight accounted); BMI, body mass index; NA, not applicable as BMI data were not collected from pregnant women. SEIFA, socio-economic index of disadvantage; quintile one represents the most disadvantaged areas, and quintile five represents the least disadvantaged areas (higher quintiles correspond to areas with lower levels of disadvantage areas where fewer individuals have low incomes, low educational attainment or work in unskilled occupations); b Equivalised household income (weekly, AUD)—an indicator of the economic resources available to each member of a household to indicate the situation of individuals and households.