Knowledge of gestational diabetic women on balanced diet during pregnancy

This research was conducted as a descriptive study to evaluate the diet of women with gestational diabetes. The research was conducted with 235 diabetic pregnant women who applied to the Baghdad Training Hospital and a private clinic of the Baghdad Governorate between 30 December 2022 and 28 March 2023. A structured personal information form was used to collect data. Number and percentage distributions were used in the analysis of the data. 32.3% of the pregnant women participating in the study were in the 28-32 age group, 54.5% of them had undergraduate and graduate education, 55.3% received nutritional advice, 29.8% received nutritional advice from a doctor, 43.4% ate four times/meal, 49.8% did not skip meals, 51.9% of those who skipped meals skipped meals to stay thin, 37.9% ate less than usual when they were sad/tired It was determined that 54.5% of them did not change their diet when they were happy/excited, and 21.7% ate fruit between meals. In line with these results, it is recommended that health professionals working in primary care should organize training programs/courses to increase the knowledge of pregnant women about the harms of obesity and the benefits of a balanced diet in terms of both maternal and infant health.