Abstract:

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between eating behaviors and pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and body weight gain in individuals with gestational diabetes mellitus. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 34 pregnant women diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus and 50 nondiabetic women above the 28th week of pregnancy. The Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire was used to assess eating habits. A quantitative food frequency questionnaire was used to assess food consumption. Results: Individuals with gestational diabetes had significantly higher levels of restrained eating behavior scores (27.11±5.98 vs 20.32±6.84) compared to nondiabetic women (p<0.05). Pre-pregnancy body mass index value was found to be related to restrained eating behavior score in individuals with gestational diabetes (p<0.05), and restrained eating score was found to be higher in individuals with gestational diabetes who had body weight gain above the recommendations than in individuals with body weight gain in accordance with the recommendations (p<0.05). The energy intake (1965±433.02 kcal/day vs. 1731.04±462.64 kcal/day), carbohydrate (201.19±59.35 g/day vs. 170.56±56.49 g/day) consumption of pregnant women diagnosed with gestational diabetes were higher than those nondiabetic women, whereas vitamin B6 (1.12±0.31 mg/day vs. 1.33±0.46 mg/day), and calcium consumptions (682.88±265.12 mg/day vs. 963.03±391.63 mg/day) were lower (p<0.05). Conclusion: Women with gestational diabetes showed a higher restrained eating behavior score, which may be attributed to pre-pregnancy body mass index and body weight gain above the recommendations. Furthermore, it has been emphasized that this may be associated with an inadequate intake of certain nutrients.

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