Studies of dietary habits in pregnancy - with special reference to the intake of iron.

The dietary habits of 94 pregnant women (median age 26 years) were studied by means of four-day dietary records. Twenty-seven women were followed longitudinally and were observed in the 10-15th, the 24-27th and the 34-37th week of gestation (L-series). The remaining 67 women comprised the A-series, of which 20, 32, and 15 made their records during the 10-15th, 24-27th, and 34-37th week of gestation, respectively. There were no significant differences between the results from these two series. The mean daily energy intake was 2360 kcal and remained unchanged during pregnancy, exceeding by 250 kcal the average intake in non-pregnant women in Gothenburg, studied earlier. The iron intake comprised 1-2 mg of haeme iron, about 10 mg of native non-haeme iron and 5-6 mg of fortificiation iron. The mean iron intake was 7.2 mg/1000 kcal, which is below the recommendation, but it was distributed over the food groups in a manner more favourable for iron absorption than in the average Swedish population. Further effects to improve the diet so as to increase the content of iron and factors known to favour iron absorption are desirable. The results justify the normal practice of prescribing supplement iron in late pregnancy.