The development and pilot evaluation of a pregnancy nutrition education intervention programme for teenage women (food for life)

Background A healthy diet in pregnancy is important for both maternal and infant health but this may be difficult to achieve particularly for groups such as teenage pregnant women, many of whom are from disadvantaged backgrounds. To our knowledge this is the first report of a practical nutrition education programme for this group in the UK. Method An intervention was designed incorporating seven informal food preparation sessions, which allowed opportunities for discussion of nutritional, and other topics (e.g. food safety and well-being in pregnancy). Midwives in a community centre setting led the sessions. The acceptability of the package to participants and midwives was recorded and pre- and post-intervention data collected on sociodemographic details, dietary intake (using an eating-habits questionnaire and a 24-h dietary recall) and cooking skills. Results The midwives found the package easy to follow and use. The 16 (of the 120 invited) women who attended found the courses helpful but objective evaluation of dietary intake was not possible because of poor compliance. Conclusions The nutrition education programme was favourably received by midwives and the women who participated. However recruitment was problematic and alternative methods of delivering and evaluating such a package should be investigated.