Associations Between Eating Attitudes, Mental Health, and Sexual Dysfunction during Pregnancy

Abstract

This cross-sectional study looked into sexual dysfunctions in a sample of Lebanese pregnant women (N = 433) while assessing their psychopathological correlates. It was a first attempt in research to examine the role of disordered eating attitudes in pregnancy, using the Arabic version of the Disordered Eating Attitudes in Pregnancy Scale. The pre/post comparison in terms of sexual functioning was based on the women’s recall, using the Pregnancy Sexual Response Inventory. According to the pregnant persons perceptions of their sexual functioning before and during pregnancy, 66.1% of the participants reported a lower frequency of sexual activity during pregnancy, 52.7% lower sexual desire, and 47.3% dyspareunia; 33% were sexually satisfied contrasted to 70% before pregnancy. Pregnancy was significantly associated with lower sexual outcomes compared to before. Higher anxiety and more disordered eating attitudes during pregnancy were significantly associated with lower sexuality composite scores. Our study accentuates the need for rigorous medical guidance on sexual activity during pregnancy and highlights dysfunctional eating behaviors and anxiety disorders as pejorative predictors of the sexual response among pregnant women. It thus sustains the hypothesis that mental health disorders pertain to the pathogenesis of sexual problems and should therefore be targeted in sexual health promotion during prenatal care.