Nutritional Status of Pregnant Women under Monitoring in Pre Distinct Prenatal Services: The Metropolitan Area and the Rural Environment - Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia

Objective

To determine differences in some nutritional aspects of pregnant women assisted at prenatal care services in a country town and in a metropolitan area.

Methods

Pregnant women received prenatal care in the city of Belo Horizonte (BH), metropolitan area, and Paula Cândido (PC), a country town. A Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) containing socioeconomic information and information about eating habits was applied. In addition,weight and height were measured on the occasion of the visits and the women were ask to give their prepregnancy weight for subsequent BMI calculation. Data were analyzed according to region and trimester of pregnancy using the SPSS software version 15.0, the t-test to compare averages and the chi-square test of independence, with the level of significance set at 5%.

Results

240 pregnant women were included, 90 fromthe country town and 150 from themetropolitan area. Of these,most weremarried (BH = 56.6%; PC = 46.6%) and did not work outside the home (BH = 54.0%; PC = 84.4%). They predominantly had 3-4 meals/ day during the 1st and 2nd quarters (BH = 54.0 and 46%; PC = 66.7 and 63.3%, respectively) and had 5-6 meals/day during Q3 in BH (44%). There was significant weight gain only in the 1st quarter (BH: 58,0%; PC: 53.3%). Weight gain versus eating habits was significant for the variables “lunch or dinner away from home” for the 1st quarter in BH (p = 0.006), “How many times they consume milk” in the 1 st quarter in PC (p = 0.03), and “How many times they consume junk food” in the 3rd quarter in BH (p = 0.009).

Conclusions

Pregnant woman showed proper eating habits in both regions despite the prevalence of pregestational overweight in BH and a low level of education and income, especially in the country town, an indicator that may be unfavorable for the nutrition of pregnant women during this period. Studies of association between eating habits and newborn health will provide more information about nutrition during pregnancy.