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Dietary patterns and maternal anthropometry in HIV-infected, pregnant Malawian women
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Dietary patterns and maternal anthropometry in HIV-infected, pregnant Malawian women

Roshan T Ramlal, Martin Tembo, Caroline C King, Sascha Ellington, Alice Soko, Maggie Chigwenembe, Charles Chasela, Denise J Jamieson, Charles van der Horst, Margaret Bentley, …
Nutrients, Vol.7(1), pp.584-594
01/14/2015
DOI: 10.3390/nu7010584
PMCID: PMC4303855
PMID: 25594441
url
https://doi.org/10.3390/nu7010584View
Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

Diet is a modifiable factor that can contribute to the health of pregnant women. In a sample of 577 HIV-positive pregnant women who completed baseline interviews for the Breastfeeding, Antiretrovirals, and Nutrition Study in Lilongwe, Malawi, cluster analysis was used to derive dietary patterns. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify associations between the dietary patterns and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), arm muscle area (AMA), arm fat area (AFA), and hemoglobin at baseline. Three key dietary patterns were identified: animal-based, plant-based, and grain-based. Women with relatively greater wealth were more likely to consume the animal-based diet, which had the highest intake of energy, protein, and fat and was associated with higher hemoglobin levels compared to the other diets. Women with the lowest wealth were more likely to consume the grain-based diet with the lowest intake of energy, protein, fat, and iron and were more likely to have lower AFA than women on the animal-based and plant-based diets, but higher AMA compared to women on the animal-based diet. Pregnant, HIV-infected women in Malawi could benefit from nutritional support to ensure greater nutrient diversity during pregnancy, when women face increased nutrient demands to support fetal growth and development.
Anthropometry Malawi Pregnancy Adult Cluster Analysis Diet Energy Intake Female HIV Infections - diet therapy Humans Linear Models Multivariate Analysis Socioeconomic Factors Young Adult

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