An evaluation of the relationship between nutrition and presence of eating behavior disorders and depression during pregnancy

Eating disorders, which mostly affect women of reproductive age, affect the physical, mental, and social health of individuals. Eating disorders during pregnancy may adversely affect maternal and fetal health. The aim of this study is to describe and evaluate the relationship between nutritional status, adherence to the Mediterranean diet, perinatal depression, and eating behavior disorders during pregnancy. This research was conducted as an online survey between December 2020-2021 and 150 healthy pregnant women between the ages of 19-45, who were in their second or third trimesters of pregnancy, were included. The participants filled out a questionnaire including Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS), Eating Attitude Test (EAT-26), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and various questions regarding sociodemographic characteristics, anthropometric measurements, and physical activity status. According to the results, iron supplement use was significantly higher in pregnant women in the third trimester (p<0.05). The pika prevalence was found to be 4%. BDI scores were 11.1±8.1; EAT-26 scores were 13.4±8.8; MEDAS scores were 7.2±1.8. EAT-26 scores of pregnant women in the second trimester were significantly higher (p<0.05). The risk of eating behavior disorder was found to be 4.6 times (p<0.01) higher in active individuals compared to those who are sedentary, and the risk of eating behavior disorder increases as the depression scores increase (p<0.05). The results of this study suggest that there might be a significant relationship between the diet quality of pregnant women and the development of eating behavior disorder and depression. Therefore, it is of great importance to detect possible eating behavior disorders throughout pregnancy and to treat them with a multidisciplinary team for the protection of maternal and fetal health.