Bagheri Maryam, Lamyian Minoor, Sadighi Jila, Ahmadi Fazlollah, Mohammadi-Nasrabadi Fatemeh
Department of Reproductive Health and Midwifery, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.
Health Metrics Research Center, ACECR, Iranian Institute for Health Sciences Research, Tehran, Iran.
Matern Child Nutr. 2025 Jan;21(1):e13725. doi: 10.1111/mcn.13725. Epub 2024 Sep 23.
Food security during pregnancy is crucial for safeguarding the health of expectant mothers and optimizing prenatal outcomes. Food insecurity can manifest in varying degrees, ranging from moderate disruptions to the quality and diversity of diet to severe cases that disrupt dietary patterns and reduce overall food intake. Limited information exists regarding food security among pregnant women in Iran. Therefore, this qualitative study aims to investigate food security during pregnancy from the perspectives of pregnant women (n = 17) and experts in food security (n = 6). Data were collected through purposeful sampling and 23 semi-structured interviews. The data analysis process occurred concurrently with data collection, employing a conventional content analysis approach. The findings underwent rigorous evaluation based on credibility, confirmability, dependability, transferability and authenticity. The results revealed that access to quality foods in pregnancy depends on the sustainability of food resources, economic access to food, the family's food budget, pregnant women's utilization of food due to pregnancy conditions, their nutritional literacy and cultural practices. Pregnant women employ various strategies to cope with food insecurity and require social and governmental support to manage it effectively. Therefore, it is suggested that health care authorities initially assess the level of food security among pregnant women and subsequently, through equitable food distribution, reform culture and increase food literacy, providing practical and informative educational programmes, and structured support, improve their food security.
孕期食品安全对于保障孕妇健康及优化产前结局至关重要。粮食不安全可表现为不同程度，从中度的饮食质量和多样性受干扰到严重的饮食模式被打乱及总体食物摄入量减少。关于伊朗孕妇粮食安全的信息有限。因此，本定性研究旨在从孕妇（n = 17）和粮食安全专家（n = 6）的角度调查孕期粮食安全情况。通过目的抽样和23次半结构化访谈收集数据。数据分析过程与数据收集同时进行，采用常规内容分析法。研究结果基于可信度、可证实性、可靠性、可转移性和真实性进行了严格评估。结果显示，孕期获取优质食物取决于食物资源的可持续性、获取食物的经济能力、家庭食物预算、孕妇因孕期状况对食物的利用情况、她们的营养知识水平及文化习俗。孕妇采用各种策略应对粮食不安全，且需要社会和政府支持以有效应对。因此，建议卫生保健当局首先评估孕妇的粮食安全水平，随后通过公平分配食物、改革文化并提高食物知识水平、提供实用且信息丰富的教育项目以及有组织的支持，改善她们的粮食安全状况。
