Eating attitude and body satisfaction of adolescent and non-adolescent pregnant women.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to compare eating attitudes and body satisfaction between adolescent and nonadolescent pregnant women.

Methods: A descriptive and comparative study was conducted with 169 pregnant women, comprising 85 adolescents and 84 nonadolescents, who presented to the obstetrics outpatient clinic of a hospital in western Turkey. Data were collected using a Personal Information Form, the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire, and the Eating Attitudes Test-40. Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U test, Kruskal-Wallis test, and Pearson correlation analysis were used for data analysis.

Results: The mean scores of the Eating Attitudes Test-40 were higher for adolescent pregnant women compared with nonadolescent pregnant women (p=0.040). It was determined that 15.3% of adolescent pregnant women and 4.8% of nonadolescent pregnant women were predisposed to eating disorders (p=0.038). The study found that the mean total score of the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire was lower for adolescent pregnant women compared with nonadolescent pregnant women, and the difference was statistically significant (p=0.000). Additionally, there was a statistically significant weak negative correlation between the scores of the Eating Attitudes Test-40 and the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire among adolescent pregnant women (r=-0.33, p<0.002).

Conclusion: Adolescent pregnant women exhibit lower levels of body satisfaction and higher susceptibility to eating disorders compared with nonadolescent pregnant women.