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Adherence to the Mediterranean diet during pregnancy and behavioural problems at 4 years of age

Esther Cendra-Duarte1,2, Josefa Canals1,3,4, Lucía Iglesias-Vázquez1,3

  • 1Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Nutrition and Mental Health (NUTRISAM) Research Group, Reus, Spain.

Maternal & Child Nutrition
|July 11, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Maternal adherence to the Mediterranean diet during pregnancy significantly reduced the likelihood of behavioral problems in 4-year-old children. This diet supports healthy child development and may prevent issues like ADHD and depression.

Area of Science:

  • Maternal and Child Health
  • Nutritional Epidemiology
  • Developmental Psychology

Background:

  • Childhood psychological issues are rising globally.
  • Maternal lifestyle, particularly nutrition during pregnancy, influences child behavioral development.
  • The Mediterranean diet is associated with numerous health benefits.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of maternal adherence to the Mediterranean diet during pregnancy on behavioral problems in children at age 4.
  • To assess specific behavioral outcomes including externalizing, attention, and depressive problems.

Main Methods:

  • Assessed 231 mother-child pairs.
  • Maternal Mediterranean diet adherence measured using a relative Mediterranean Diet Score (rMED).
  • Child behavioral outcomes evaluated via standardized questionnaires (Child Behaviour Checklist, Teacher's Report Form, Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschool Version).

Main Results:

  • Higher maternal rMED scores during pregnancy correlated with a lower probability of clinical scores for total behavioral problems (OR=0.42).
  • Significant reductions observed in externalizing (OR=0.29), attention (OR=0.32), ADHD (OR=0.36), oppositional defiant (OR=0.06), and depressive problems (OR=0.38).

Conclusions:

  • Maternal adherence to the Mediterranean diet during pregnancy is linked to better behavioral outcomes in children.
  • The findings underscore the critical role of prenatal nutrition, specifically the Mediterranean diet, in fostering healthy child development.
  • This dietary pattern may offer a protective effect against a range of childhood behavioral issues.

Keywords:
Mediterranean dietbehavioural problemchildchild developmentdietpregnancyprenatal nutrition

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