The Association Between Eating Quickly and Excessive Gestational Weight Gain

Area of Science:

• Maternal-fetal Medicine
• Nutritional Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Appropriate gestational weight gain (GWG) is crucial for maternal and infant health outcomes.
• Eating habits during pregnancy can influence GWG, but the specific impact of eating speed is less understood.
• Excessive GWG is associated with various adverse pregnancy complications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between the habit of eating quickly and the risk of excessive GWG in pregnant women.
• To quantify the risk of excessive GWG associated with different eating speeds.

Main Methods:

• A questionnaire on eating habits was administered to 1246 pregnant Japanese women.
• Participants were categorized into three groups based on their eating speed: always/usually fast, sometimes fast, and rarely/never fast.
• Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the odds ratios (ORs) for excessive GWG, adjusting for relevant covariates.

Main Results:

• Women who ate quickly (always/usually) had a significantly higher risk of excessive GWG compared to those who rarely/never ate quickly.
• In the adjusted model, the OR for excessive GWG was 0.73 (95% CI: 0.55-0.96) for sometimes fast eaters and 0.59 (95% CI: 0.40-0.86) for rarely/never fast eaters, compared to always/usually fast eaters (p for trend = 0.003).
• The trend analysis indicated a significant inverse relationship between eating speed and the risk of excessive GWG.

Conclusions:

• The habit of eating quickly is associated with an increased risk of excessive gestational weight gain.
• Slower eating habits may contribute to maintaining appropriate GWG during pregnancy.
• Recommendations for mindful eating and slower consumption could be beneficial for pregnant women.