Abstract:

Health demographics around the world have recognized that in the different stages of women's life, pregnancy requires periodic monitoring in terms of maintaining and improving health. Thus, it is essential to include and update the topic of microbiota in nutrition education given to pregnant women as a part of the routine service. Health education is accepted as an ethical, easy, sustainable and cost-effective intervention method. Only women experience health problems related to pregnancy and childbirth. In this sense, microbiota is a name given to all microorganisms found in humans. The genome of microorganisms is called the microbiome. Adequate and balanced nutrition of women during pregnancy is crucial for maintaining both maternal and fetal health. Microbiota varies depending on endogenous and exogenous factors that change throughout a person's life, such as geographical area, genetics, birth method, age, lifestyle, nutrition, antibiotic use, and diseases passed on. Due to the physiological changes occurring in a pregnant woman, the daily need for vitamins and minerals for the growth and development of both, the pregnant woman and the fetus, increases. As each person’s gut microbiota has its own unique content and distribution, it resembles fingerprints. Moreover, the role of microbiota in preventing excessive weight gain during pregnancy is as essential as the right diet. For the preventive nutrition education of diseases which pose a risk to pregnant women, such as preeclampsia, eclampsia, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and obesity, probiotic and prebiotic nutritional advice should be featured. To transfer current information about microbiota into the nutrition trainings given to pregnant women, it is aimed to raise awareness by scanning the current literature. In the future, multidisciplinary studies providing nutrition education during the cohort-model pregnancy period should be conducted. Furthermore, in expectation that the results of nutrition trainings conducted during pregnancy will vary, it is also recommended to make cost-effectiveness measurements.

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