Pregnant women’s knowledge of weight, weight gain, complications of obesity and weight management strategies in pregnancy

Abstract

BackgroundObesity is increasingly common in the obstetric population. Maternal obesity and excess gestational weight gain (GWG) are associated with increased perinatal risk. There is limited published data demonstrating the level of pregnant women’s knowledge regarding these problems, their consequences and management strategies.We aimed to assess the level of knowledge of pregnant women regarding: (i) their own weight and body mass index (BMI) category, (ii) awareness of guidelines for GWG, (iii) concordance of women’s own expectations with guidelines, (iv) knowledge of complications associated with excess GWG, and (v) knowledge of safe weight management strategies in pregnancy.Methods364 pregnant women from a single center university hospital antenatal clinic were interviewed by an obstetric registrar. The women in this convenience sample were asked to identify their weight category, their understanding of the complications of obesity and excessive GWG in pregnancy and safe and/or effective weight management strategies in pregnancy.ResultsNearly half (47.8%) of the study population were overweight or obese. 74% of obese women underestimated their BMI category. 64% of obese women and 40% of overweight women overestimated their recommended GWG. Women’s knowledge of the specific risks associated with excess GWG or maternal obesity was poor. Women also reported many incorrect beliefs about safe weight management in pregnancy.ConclusionsMany pregnant women have poor knowledge about obesity, GWG, their consequences and management strategies. Bridging this knowledge gap is an important step towards improving perinatal outcomes for all pregnant women, especially those who enter pregnancy overweight or obese.

Falling Short of Guidelines? Nutrition and Weight Gain Knowledge in Pregnancy

“…Consistent with Shub et al [22], over a third of the women in this study had no knowledge of the GWG guidelines. Some women reported being “completely unaware” or “not being able to remember” the guidelines whereas others said they did not receive GWG information from their physician.…”

“…One study by de Jersey, Nicholson, Callaway, and Daniels [21] did examine knowledge of dietary recommendations and found that participants knew limited information about the correct recommended daily number of servings of fruit (8%) and vegetables (36%); only 4% of participants actually consumed the recommended five servings/day of vegetables. Another study by Shub, Huning, Campbell, and McCarthy [22] found that 64% of obese women and 40% of overweight women overestimated their GWG and had poor knowledge of the risks associated with high GWG and maternal obesity.However, research examining pregnant women's knowledge of healthy eating behaviors as they relate to GWG is scant. This research is needed to develop effective interventions promoting healthy eatingbehaviors in an effort to better manage GWG.…”

Weight-related risk perception among healthy and overweight pregnant women: a cross-sectional study

“…15,16 This difference may relate to the nature of the survey items. The New Beginnings study asked participants to report the likelihood of each condition occurring, worded as it applies to the respondent, whereas the comparative studies 15,16,27 assessed knowledge as it applied to any pregnant woman. It is possible to acknowledge a health risk without accepting personal susceptibility to the threat.…”

Attitudes to hygienic-dietary regime and habits of pregnant women in Zajecar

“…Pri tome su neočekivano visokoobrazovane trudnice potcenile tu optimalnu vrednost, što nam ukazuje da edukativne mere treba usmeriti na sve trudnice nezavisno od pariteta i stepena obrazovanja. Naši rezultati su u skladu sa rezultatima Shuba i saradnika [8], kao i Downsa i saradnika, koji navode da 42% žena ne zna koja je preporučena masa koju treba dodati tokom trudnoće [9].…”