Nutritional profile and associated factors in women with gestational diabetes

Abstract

Objective: The aim of the present study was to assess the nutritional status of women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and determine associations with demographic, socioeconomic, obstetric and clinical variables. Methods: Data collection was carried out through interviews with pregnant women in prenatal follow up. Results: The sample was made up of 50 women (mean age: 32.8 +/- 5.6 years) in the second (26%) and third (74%) trimesters. Most participants were non-Caucasian, married or in a stable relationship, had more than nine years of schooling, had no paid activities, had a household income of less than two times the minimum salary, had previous pregnancies and had given birth before. The gestational body mass index (BMI) revealed that 88% of the sample had excess weight. Oral glucose tolerance at 120 min was high among the women in treatment for GDM. Adequate gestational BMI was associated with diastolic blood pressure. Age >= 25 was a risk factor for GDM. Conclusion: While excess weight before and during pregnancy was detected in the present sample, this variable was not a risk factor for the occurrence of GDM.