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Updated: Aug 14, 2026
04:48
Control of Eating Behavior Using a Novel Feedback System
Published on: May 8, 2018
Eating habits and eating disorders during pregnancy
C G Fairburn1, A Stein, R Jones
1University Department of Psychiatry, Warneford Hospital, Oxford, United Kingdom.
Psychosomatic Medicine
|November 1, 1992
Summary
Pregnancy cravings and aversions are common, especially early on. Eating disorder symptoms fluctuate during pregnancy but don't appear linked to pregnancy outcomes in this general population study.
Area of Science:
- Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Psychiatry
- Nutritional Science
Background:
- Pregnancy involves significant physiological and psychological changes.
- Understanding eating behaviors, including cravings and aversions, is crucial during gestation.
- The relationship between eating disorders and pregnancy is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To prospectively describe eating changes in primigravid women.
- To examine pregnancy cravings, aversions, and eating disorder features.
- To investigate the link between eating behaviors and pregnancy outcomes.
Main Methods:
- A prospective study of 100 primigravid women.
- Standardized interviews for data collection.
- Assessment of dietary cravings, aversions, and eating disorder characteristics.
Main Results:
- Dietary cravings and aversions were prevalent, primarily in early pregnancy.
- Eating disorder features initially decreased but later increased in severity.
- Pregnancy cravings rarely led to overeating episodes.
- No association was found between pregnancy outcome and pre-pregnancy eating disorder severity.
Conclusions:
- Eating behaviors, including cravings and aversions, are common and dynamic during pregnancy.
- Pregnancy-related eating changes do not appear to negatively impact pregnancy outcomes.
- Further research may explore the long-term psychological effects of these changes.
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