Adherence to the Mediterranean diet during pregnancy: A cross-sectional study

This study aims to investigate the effect of nutritional knowledge level on adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) in pregnant women. For this purpose, a questionnaire study was applied to 241 pregnant women in a clinic in Edirne between January 2024 and March 2025. The sociodemographic data collection form, Mediterranean Diet Adherence Scale (MEDAS) and Nutrition Knowledge Scale (NKS) were used as data collection tools. As a result of the research, it was found that 53.5% of the participants had low, 28.6% had moderate and 17.9% had high adherence to the MD. There is a statistically significant relationship between MEDAS and NKS levels (p<0.001). The proportion of participants with low NKS levels who had moderate and high MEDAS levels was found to be significantly lower than those with low MEDAS levels (p<0.05). In participants with high NKS levels, the proportion of those with moderate and high MEDAS levels was found to be significantly higher than those with low MEDAS levels (p<0.05). In those with very high NKS levels, the rate of those with medium and high MEDAS levels was found to be significantly higher than those with low MEDAS levels (p<0.05). Pregnancy is a risky period in terms of nutrition. Therefore, in order to increase adherence to the MD in pregnant women, pregnant women should be informed and encouraged by nutritionists on this subject.