Abstract
Background: A satisfactory nutritional status, as a result of optimal food intake, before conception and during pregnancy, is important for a successful pregnancy.
Objective: To evaluate the energy and nutrient intake before conception and at mid-gestation in a group of pregnant women (n=50) in relation to the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNR).
Design: Pre-pregnant diet was studied by an 84-item food-frequency questionnaire and mid-gestational diet by repeated 24h dietary recalls.
Results: Average requirements (AR) were met for all nutrients except for selenium intake before pregnancy. Absolute intakes were below recommended intake (RI) according to NNR for folate, vitamin D, selenium, vitamin E and iron both before and at mid-gestation. However, intakes were still above the lower intake levels (LI) defined by NNR for almost all women. Twenty-three women were below LI for selenium before pregnancy and five for each of vitamin D and selenium at mid-gestation. When expressed as nutrient densities (amount of nutrient per energy unit), intakes were below NNR for folate, vitamin D and selenium before pregnancy, and for folate, vitamin D and iron at mid-gestation. Intakes were adjusted for underreporting, estimated to 20% as revealed after comparing energy intake/basal metabolic rate with grouped physical activity level values.
Conclusions: The reported food intake satisfied the recommended level of intake according to AR, but when using RI for planning a diet as a reference, folate, vitamin D, selenium and iron intake were insufficient. Most striking were the low levels of folate and vitamin D intake both before pregnancy and at mid-gestation.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Helen Ingvarsson (co-ordinator midwife), Per-åke Holmgren (senior physician) and midwives who perform ultrasounds at the obstetrics clinic at Norrland University Hospital, for their contributions in bringing about the present study. Finally, we thank the women who participated in the study and thus made it possible.