Pregnant women's nutrition knowledge levels and some blood parameters in gynecology and obstetrics clinic.
Muradiye Karasu Ayata, Aybüke Tayarer, Halime Aydemir
PMID 40353732WHAT IT FOUND
Pregnant women reported average nutrition knowledge scores of 56.61/80 and 35.45/48, but only 22.2% had received nutrition education and no score difference was found between educated and uneducated.
Hemoglobin <11 g/dl occurred in 12.9%.
Key findings
01In this clinic sample, 22.2% of pregnant women had received nutrition education, 15.7% from healthcare professionals or dietitians, and 36.1% wanted healthy eating education.
02Average nutrition knowledge scores were 56.61 ± 7.48 for basic nutrition and 35.45 ± 5.22 for food choice, and these scores did not differ significantly between women who received nutrition education and those who did not (p > 0.05).
03Average hemoglobin was 12.35 ± 1.32 g/dl, 12.9% had hemoglobin <11 g/dl, and 71.3% took iron with 67.6% taking folic acid during pregnancy.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
This was a cross-sectional study of 108 women at one hospital outpatient clinic in Turkey, so it cannot show that nutrition education changed knowledge or blood values. Participants were voluntary, in the 2nd or 3rd trimester, and those who did not complete the survey were excluded, which may limit generalisability. Nutrition education, supplement use, and knowledge were self-reported, and blood values came from routine prenatal records rather than samples collected for the study. The knowledge scale had reliability coefficients of 0.70 for basic nutrition and 0.65 for food choice in this sample, so the food-choice scores were less stable. Only 22.2% reported prior nutrition education, and among women beyond 28 weeks, 48.9% had undergone OGTT, so comparisons and screening coverage were limited.
Declared interests
The study was financed in part by the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico - Brasil (CNPq), process 401923/2024-0; no other author conflicts of interest are stated.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that nutrition education does not improve knowledge because there was no significant score difference. The study was cross-sectional, only 22.2% reported prior education, and it did not test an education intervention, so this result cannot show that education is ineffective.