Adherence to the Planetary Health Diet Index and Fetal Body Composition

Area of Science:

• Maternal nutrition and fetal development
• Planetary Health Diet (PHD) and pregnancy outcomes
• Fetal growth and body composition

Background:

• The Planetary Health Diet (PHD) promotes plant-based eating for health and sustainability.
• Limited evidence exists on the association between maternal PHD adherence during pregnancy and fetal growth.
• Assessing adherence using the PHD Index (PHDI) is crucial for understanding dietary impacts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between maternal PHDI adherence in early pregnancy and fetal biometric measurements.
• To analyze longitudinal changes in fetal body composition and organ volumes based on maternal diet.

Main Methods:

• Secondary analysis of a prospective cohort of 1464 pregnant women across 12 US clinical sites.
• Maternal PHDI adherence assessed via Food Frequency Questionnaire between 8-13 weeks' gestation (low, moderate, high).
• Longitudinal fetal biometrics (including estimated fetal weight, head circumference, fractional limb volumes) measured up to 5 times between 15-42 weeks' gestation.

Main Results:

• Higher PHDI adherence was associated with larger estimated fetal weight and head circumference in late pregnancy.
• Increased adherence correlated with smaller fractional lean arm volume and larger fractional fat arm volume during gestation.
• Significant associations were observed for abdominal area and other body composition measures.

Conclusions:

• Higher maternal adherence to the Planetary Health Diet in early pregnancy is linked to increased fetal adiposity.
• The study suggests a potential association with reduced fetal lean tissue, warranting further investigation.
• These findings may have implications for offspring metabolic health and long-term well-being.