The knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours of pregnant women regarding seafood consumption during the antenatal period: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Maternal nutrition impacts fetal growth and development. The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) guidelines recommend pregnant women consume 2-3 servings (224-336 g) of fish/seafood per week to support intake of long chain omega 3 fatty acids, given adequate consumption supports numerous health benefits including reduced risk of preterm and early preterm birth. Evidence indicates that pregnant women purposely lower their fish/seafood intake, largely due to fears of methylmercury exposure. The aim of this study was to explore pregnant women's knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours regarding their fish/seafood consumption during the antenatal period. METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were conducted between October 2018 and December 2020 among a purposive sample of 12 pregnant women from the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analysed using an interpretative phenomenological approach. Themes were developed on the women's lived experience related to fish/seafood knowledge, attitudes, and consumption behaviour. RESULTS: The most prominent finding was widespread non-adherence to fish/seafood consumption guidelines. This was largely owing to a lack of proactive health promotion related to the health benefits of fish/seafood throughout pregnancy, including the health promoting roles of long chain omega 3 fatty acids for fetal growth and development. Three themes were identified: nutrition knowledge; sources of health promotion; and barriers and enablers to fish/seafood consumption. CONCLUSIONS: To support adequate maternal consumption of fish/seafood throughout pregnancy, emphasis should be placed on the benefits of consuming this food group regularly. Additionally, pregnant women should receive education about the health promoting role of long chain omega 3 fatty acids. Dietitians are well placed to provide this information.

Different experiences of weight management and physical activity during pregnancy - a qualitative study of women and healthcare professionals in Australia.

OBJECTIVE: Pregnancy is often described as a pivotal life stage for women, where regular contact with health professionals may play an important role in lifestyle awareness. This study explored the knowledge, practices, and beliefs of health professionals and pregnant women regarding physical activity and weight management during the antenatal period. METHODS: A qualitative study was undertaken in southeastern Australia using individual interviews. Recruitment sought women of gestation >12 weeks, experiencing an uncomplicated pregnancy (n = 6), and antenatal health professionals including midwives (n = 4) and an obstetrician (n = 1). Data were analysed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. RESULTS: Three major themes emerged: (1) women rely on multiple sources of pregnancy-related healthy lifestyle information; (2) discussions around healthy lifestyle behaviours are low priority and often inconsistent; and (3) lifestyle-related topics perceived as sensitive make some conversations and actions difficult. CONCLUSIONS: Pregnant women expressed gaps in lifestyle-related knowledge and education being provided by health professionals. In turn, health professionals expressed difficulty discussing sensitive topics such as weight with pregnant women and had limited knowledge of pregnancy-specific physical activity guidelines. The themes generated by this study may form the foundation for further research to inform clinical policy and practice regarding advice in antenatal care.

Alterations in gut microbiota caused by major depressive disorder or a low FODMAP diet and where they overlap.

Beneficial changes in microbiota observed in individuals with a major depressive disorder (MDD) may be initiated with a low fermentable oligosaccharide, disaccharide, monosaccharide, and polyol (FODMAP) elimination diet. Academic Search Ultimate, APA PsychINFO, Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, Scopus and Web of Science were searched for original research documenting differences in microbiota in MDD or changes with a low FODMAP diet in adults (age 18 years +). Studies with fecal microbiota, 16 s RNA sequencing and QIIME pipelines were included. Studies using antibiotics, probiotics, and medications such as antidepressants were excluded. Additionally, studies based on a single gender were excluded as gender impacts microbiota changes in MDD. Four studies addressed differences in microbiota with MDD and another four assessed shifts occurring with a low FODMAP diet. The abundance of Bacteroidetes, Bacteroidaceae and Bacteroides were lower in individuals with MDD but increased with a low FODMAP diet. Abundance of Ruminoccaceae was lower and Bilophila was higher with both a low FODMAP diet and MDD. These results provide preliminary evidence that a low FODMAP diet might drive changes in microbiota that also benefit people with MDD. Further research to assess whether a low FODMAP diet can treat MDD through modification of targeted microbiota is warranted.

#Healthpromotion: A qualitative exploration of how dietitians can use social media to positively influence women aged 18-35 years.

AIMS: To understand how young adult women use social media, including which nutrition and health-related content they prefer to view and why. Findings are intended to support dietitians to use social media more effectively for health promotion to reach, educate and positively influence young adult women. METHODS: Qualitative research was conducted through semi-structured interviews involving 10 women aged 18-35 years via Zoom videoconferencing. The interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using an interpretative phenomenological approach. RESULTS: Young adult women use social media daily to view a wide variety of content, including nutrition and health-related content. Three themes were identified: authenticity, engaging content, and affecting trust through selling products. CONCLUSION: To effectively use social media for health promotion, dietitians need to share their authentic voice while maintaining professional standards. Recommendations for effective social media engagement include using engaging content, infographics, and videos with closed captions. More research is needed to assess whether health promotion deployed via social media is effective at increasing nutrition knowledge, improving health literacy, and producing behaviour change.

After the spotlight: are evidence-based recommendations for refeeding post-contest energy restriction available for physique athletes? A scoping review.

BACKGROUND: To date, there is limited consensus on post-contest recovery recommendations for natural physique athletes. The available literature emphasizes the negative consequences of extreme dieting associated with physique contests, yet offers only speculative suggestions to facilitate physiological recovery post-contest. This scoping review evaluates evidence-based recommendations for recovery in post-physique contests. METHODS: The online search engines and databases Google Scholar, PubMed, and Scopus were searched systematically and 12 peer reviewed journal articles were included in the review. RESULTS: Six key factors were identified that directly impacted on physiological recovery post-contest: (1) body composition, (2) recovery dietary intake, (3) resting metabolic rate (RMR) restoration, (4) endocrine measures recovery, (5) menstrual cycle recovery, and (6) psychological aspects of recovery. CONCLUSIONS: Three dietary strategies have been proposed to facilitate physiological recovery post-contest while bearing in mind body composition and future athlete outcomes; (1) a gradual increase in energy intake to maintenance requirements, (2) ad libitum eating, (3) an immediate return to maintenance energy requirements. Future research is required to determine the timeline in which full physiological recovery occurs post-contest and which strategies best support athlete health and performance during post-contest recovery.

Depression, Is It Treatable in Adults Utilising Dietary Interventions? A Systematic Review of Randomised Controlled Trials.

This systematic literature review examined whole food or whole diet interventions to treat depression. The inclusion criteria encompassed adults, depression, a recognized depression scale and a whole food or diet intervention. APA PsychINFO, CINAHL, the Cochrance Central Register of Controlled Trails, MEDLINE and Scopus were searched for original research addressing diet as a treatment for depression in adult populations. The quality of the study was assessed using the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Quality Criteria Checklist. Seven studies; with 49,156 participants; met the eligibility criteria. All these studies found positive outcomes with depression levels decreasing after dietary intervention. The calculated effect size varied from small (Cohen's d = 0.32) to very large (Cohen's d = 1.82). The inconsistent nature of the studies limited the synthesis of the data. Recommendations are provided to enhance future study design and measurement outcomes. Overall, the findings show a positive result for diets that promote an increased intake of fresh produce, wholegrains, low-fat dairy and lean protein sources, while also decreasing the intake of processed and high-fat foods. No funding was provided for this review. The protocol for this review is registered with PROSPERO (CRD42020210426).

Evaluation of a specialist antenatal nutrition clinic for women with a body mass index ≥ 40kg/m2: A qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the views of women who attended a specialist antenatal nutrition clinic that was specifically developed and piloted for pregnant women with a BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2. DESIGN: A phenomenological approach, using individual interviews, was employed. Discussions were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim and scrutinised using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. Themes were pinpointed and supported with direct quotes to demonstrate results. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Eight women, with a BMI ≥ 40 kg/m2, receiving antenatal care at a tertiary hospital in south eastern Australia and who participated in a specialist antenatal nutrition service were interviewed. FINDINGS: Three main themes emerged: 1) Motivation to be Healthy; 2) Woman Centred Nutrition Care; 3) Conflicts, Confusion and Assumptions. KEY CONCLUSIONS: Pregnant women with a BMI ≥ 40kgm2 responded positively to incorporating dietitians in the antenatal care setting. The reinforcement and reassurance provided by the specialist dietetic team was highly valued. More effective communication regarding referrals, improved consistency in information provided by the entire antenatal service and continuity of dietetic support beyond birth would add value to future interventions.

Effect of flavor and awareness of kilojoule content of drinks on preference and fluid balance in team sports.

A palatable flavor is known to enhance fluid intake during exercise; however, a fear of excessive kilojoule intake may deter female athletes from consuming a sports drink during training sessions. In order to examine this issue, we monitored fluid balance during 9 separate training sessions undertaken by junior elite female netball players (n = 9), female basketball players (n = 7), and male basketball players (n = 8). The beverages tested were water, a regular carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage (6.8% CHO, 18.7 mmol/L Na, 3.0 mmol/L K, 1,130 kJ/L), and an identical tasting, low kilojoule electrolyte beverage (1% CHO, 18.7 mmol/L Na, 3.0 mmoI/L K, 170 kJ/L). Each subject received each of the 3 drinks at 3 separate training sessions, in a randomized, balanced order. Subjects were aware of the beverage provided. Change in body mass over the training session was used to estimate body fluid change, while voluntary fluid intake was determined from the change in weight of drink bottles used in each session. The overall fluid balance on drinks classified as regular, low kilojoule, and water was -11.3 ml/h (95%CI -99.6 to 77.0), -29.5 ml/h (95%CI -101.4 to 42.5) and-156.4 ml/h (95%CI-215.1 to-97.6), respectively. Theresults indicate that, overall, better fluid balance was achieved using either of the flavored drinks compared to water. These data confirm that flavored drinks enhance fluid balance in a field situation, and suggest that the energy content of the drink is relatively unimportant in determining voluntary fluid intake.