Socioeconomic Status and Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Risk Factors among Pregnant Women in the Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly – Central Region, Ghana

Introduction Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) account for 74% of global mortalities, with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) being the leading cause. The objective of this study was to investigate the associations between socioeconomic status (SES) and CVD risk factors among pregnant women in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana. Methodology: This quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted in three health facilities in the Cape Coast Metropolis. Systematic random sampling was used to select 160 pregnant women attending the three antenatal clinics. Data were collected via a structured questionnaire and analysed via IBM SPSS Statistics 27 and R 4.3.1. Sociodemographic data, anthropometric data, maternal characteristics, dietary patterns, and blood pressure data were collected and analysed. Results and findings: The findings revealed that 25 (15.6%), 51 (31.9%), 64 (40%) and 20 (12.5%) patients had no risk factor, one risk factor, two risk factors, and three risk factors, respectively. Approximately 84.4% of the participants had at least one risk factor. Higher SES was associated with increased CVD risk factors. Approximately 56.9% of the participants were either overweight or obese, 7.5% had high blood pressure, 51.9% had a poor dietary pattern, and 37.5% were physically inactive. Age (estimate = 0.695, p < 0.001) and marital status (estimate = 4.091, p = 0.010) had positive and significant influences on blood pressure. SES (estimate = -0.002, p = 0.957), employment (estimate = 0.737, p = 0.547), and educational level (estimate = 1.198, p = 0.1405) had no significant effects on BP. Age (estimate = 0.408, p < 0.001) and marital status (estimate = 4.318, p < 0.001) had substantial positive influences on body mass index (BMI). In contrast, SES (estimate = 0.037, p = 0.109), parity (estimate = 0.559, p = 0.174), and job status (estimate = -0.619, p = 0.370) had a lower, nonsignificant influence on BMI. Conclusion This study highlights the significant impacts of age and marital status on blood pressure and body mass index among pregnant women, whereas socioeconomic status had no meaningful influence on cardiovascular disease risk factors. Employment status demonstrated a notable negative association with dietary patterns, underscoring the complex interplay between sociodemographic factors and health outcomes in this population.