Abstract
ABSTRACT Objective: To evaluate dietary patterns and significance of diet for pregnant women. Methods: Cross-sectional study carried out in eight health units in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, with 201 pregnant women. The following instruments were used: a socio-economic and health questionnaire, the Free-Word Association Test, and a Food Frequency Questionnaire. Dietary patterns were identified using principal components and factor analysis. Poisson regression with 5% significance level was used. Results: Three dietary patterns were identified: current Brazilian pattern (beans, rice, processed meats, fats, refined grains, pasta and pastries, soft drink, sugar and sweets, cookies and crackers); healthy pattern (fruits and fruit juices, vegetables, whole grains, seafood, dairy products); and energy-rich pattern (salty deep-fried snacks, popcorn, packaged snacks, instant noodles, tubers, and chicken). Women who did not receive nutrition guidance during prenatal care showed less chance of adherence to the current Brazilian dietary pattern (PR=0.87), and therefore their level of consumption of foods commonly present in Brazilian diets was low. For most women, the significance of diet was reported as important and healthy, but it was not associated with any of the diet patterns identified. However, the women who did not consider that during pregnancy diet should be healthy showed greater chance of adherence to the energy-rich pattern (PR=1.18). This finding deserves special attention since excessive weight gain can have a negative effect on pregnancy. Conclusion: Nutrition guidance during prenatal care and the way pregnant women perceive their eating habits can influence their food choices during pregnancy.
Highlights
Nutritional care during pregnancy contributes to an adequate nutritional status preventing negative impacts on maternal and infant health resulting from low or excess body weight [1,2,3]
Three major dietary patterns were identified among the pregnant women investigated: current Brazilian, healthy, and energy-rich
According to the Pesquisa de Orçamentos Familiares (POF, Family Budget Survey) – which is conducted every five years in Brazil to obtain general information about households, families, people, and consumption habits among others – rice, beans, beef, juices, soft drinks, and coffee show the highest average consumption in Brazilian households [21]. This dietary pattern combines the traditional Brazilian diet, which is based on the important nutritional combination of rice and beans, with the inclusion of processed foods that are rich in sugar, sodium, fats and that are high in calories [21]
Summary
Nutritional care during pregnancy contributes to an adequate nutritional status preventing negative impacts on maternal and infant health resulting from low or excess body weight [1,2,3]. In order to ensure an adequate pregnancy monitoring, prenatal care should begin during the first trimester, i.e., before completing 13 weeks of pregnancy. For women with low-risk pregnancy, attending all prenatal visits provides greater opportunity to monitor maternal weight gain and undertake educational activities [4]. Among these activities is food and nutrition education, which can help pregnant women adopt healthy eating habits [5]. Few studies have investigated pregnant women’s perception of pregnancy-related phenomena and their significance for those women [8]
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