Impact of a nutritional intervention in overweight pregnant women on child growth and development at six months

Abstract

Evidence suggests that the adoption of healthy lifestyle habits during pregnancy influences fetal and infant growth and development. The aim is to assess the impact of a nutritional intervention on encouraging the consumption of fresh or minimally processed foods in adult overweight pregnant women on child growth and development at six months. The present study is part of a randomized controlled clinical trial, in progress, conducted among 350 overweight pregnant women attended at Basic Health Units (UBS) in Ribeirão Preto-SP. Participants are randomly allocated in the control or intervention groups. The pregnant women in the intervention group will participate in three nutritional counseling sessions. In the study, two assessments will be performed during pregnancy and one after delivery, when the mother-child binomial will be evaluated. Data on the weight and height of children at six months will be obtained by collecting secondary data in the information systems and medical records. The anthropometric Weight-for-Age (W/A), Height-for-Age (H/A), Weight-for-Height (W/H), and Body Mass Index-for-age (BMI/A) indices will be calculated and classified according to the curves of the World Health Organization. Adjusted linear regression models will be used to investigate the effect of the intervention on the Z-score values of the indices. The analyzes will be performed in the SPSS software, and the level of significance will be p <0.05. The clinical trial and the present study are registered on the Brazilian Clinical Trials Registry (Rebec) platform, RBR-2w9bhc and RBR-7yx36h, respectively. (AU)