Food adaptations and challenges during early pregnancy: A qualitative exploration of women’s experience

IF 2.5 3区 医学 Q1 NURSING
Cindy Chevalley Gerber , Isabelle Carrard , Marielle Schmied , Raphaël Hammer
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Abstract

Background

Maternal nutrition is a significant factor influencing both fetal and maternal health. Barriers to healthy eating during pregnancy have been mostly investigated in terms of nutritional awareness and compliance with nutritional guidelines. However, little is known about women’s experiences of changing dietary practices in the first trimester of pregnancy specifically.

Aim

To explore women’s experiences of food adaptation in the context of daily life in early pregnancy, focusing on challenges and strategies to deal with them.

Methods

Face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposeful sample of 20 pregnant women after 16 weeks’ gestation in Switzerland. Data analysis followed the principles of thematic analysis.

Findings

We produced three core themes – “navigating the information jungle”, “handling pregnancy symptoms”, “keeping pregnancy secret and social norms around meals” – reflecting three significant challenges women faced in early pregnancy, and eight strategies they used to deal with these challenges.

Conclusion

Our findings highlight that food adaptations in early pregnancy lie at the intersection of bodily, cognitive, emotional, and psychosocial dimensions of eating. The absence of consultation with a perinatal health professional characterises early pregnancy, fostering women’s anxiety and uncertainty in relation to nutritional recommendations. Pregnant women should be entitled to an earlier reimbursed follow-up appointment during the first trimester. A consultation with a midwife or a dietitian would be particularly well-suited to provide them with reassurance and to help them achieve healthy diet despite the challenges they encounter.
怀孕早期的食物适应和挑战:对妇女经验的定性探索
母体营养是影响胎儿和母体健康的重要因素。对怀孕期间健康饮食障碍的调查主要是在营养意识和遵守营养准则方面进行的。然而,人们对女性在怀孕前三个月改变饮食习惯的经历知之甚少。目的探讨妇女在妊娠早期日常生活中的食物适应经历,重点探讨其面临的挑战和应对策略。方法采用面对面半结构化访谈法,对20名瑞士妊娠16周的孕妇进行有目的的抽样调查。数据分析遵循主题分析原则。调查结果我们制作了三个核心主题——“在信息丛林中导航”、“处理怀孕症状”、“保守怀孕秘密和围绕饮食的社会规范”——反映了妇女在怀孕早期面临的三个重大挑战,以及她们用来应对这些挑战的八种策略。结论:我们的研究结果强调,怀孕早期的食物适应处于饮食的身体、认知、情感和社会心理维度的交叉点。没有向围产期保健专业人员咨询是早孕的特点,这助长了妇女对营养建议的焦虑和不确定。孕妇应该有权在妊娠的前三个月获得更早的报销随访预约。与助产士或营养师的咨询将特别适合为他们提供保证,并帮助他们实现健康饮食,尽管他们遇到了挑战。
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来源期刊
Midwifery
Midwifery 医学-护理
CiteScore
4.50
自引率
7.40%
发文量
221
审稿时长
13.4 weeks
期刊介绍: Midwifery publishes the latest peer reviewed international research to inform the safety, quality, outcomes and experiences of pregnancy, birth and maternity care for childbearing women, their babies and families. The journal’s publications support midwives and maternity care providers to explore and develop their knowledge, skills and attitudes informed by best available evidence. Midwifery provides an international, interdisciplinary forum for the publication, dissemination and discussion of advances in evidence, controversies and current research, and promotes continuing education through publication of systematic and other scholarly reviews and updates. Midwifery articles cover the cultural, clinical, psycho-social, sociological, epidemiological, education, managerial, workforce, organizational and technological areas of practice in preconception, maternal and infant care. The journal welcomes the highest quality scholarly research that employs rigorous methodology. Midwifery is a leading international journal in midwifery and maternal health with a current impact factor of 1.861 (© Thomson Reuters Journal Citation Reports 2016) and employs a double-blind peer review process.
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