Nutritional Status of Mother and Gestational Age

Abstract

Back ground: Mothers’ nutritional status is an important factor in the determination of preterm births among Indian children. Objective: To assess mothers’ nutritional status during pregnancy determining the gestational age. Material and method: A comparative, exploratory approach and Prospective Cohort study design was used to identify maternal risk factors like maternal occupation, nutrition, and rest during night and during day time and education of father influencing on gestational age. The data was collected by using structured interview schedule. All consecutive 365 eligible mothers delivered at Krishna Hospital, Karad till the desired sample size was reached were included in the study. Results: The mean gestational age was lower among mothers doing sedentary, moderate and heavy work, whose calorie requirement was less than RDA [i.e. < 2250 kcal, < 2580 Kcal and < 3200 kcal respectively]. Conclusion: The mean gestational age of babies born to the heavy workers was significantly lower than the moderate and sedentary workers.

Keywords

• Gestational Age
• Nutrition
• Mothers’ health
• Malnutrition
• India