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Trial Lecture – time and place
See Trial Lecture.
Adjudication committee
- First opponent: Senior Lecturer Laurene Boateng, University of Ghana, Ghana
- Second opponent: Professor Tor Strand, University of Bergen, Norway
- Third member and chair of the evaluation committee: Associate Professor Hely Katariina Laine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo
Chair of the Defence
Professor Mahmood Reza Amiry-Moghaddam, University of Oslo
Principal Supervisor
Professor Per Ole Iversen, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo
Summary
In low-resource settings, such as Malawi, undernutrition poses a huge intergenerational challenge. Maternal undernutrition can have detrimental consequences for both mother and child, such as increased risk of morbidity and mortality.
A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate dietary intakes among rural pregnant women in Malawi, to explore seasonal differences in diet and birth size, and to investigate potential associations between diet and birth size. As dietary information is resource-demanding to collect, the use of dietary diversity score, as a simpler proxy tool for nutrient adequacy, was also investigated in this setting.
During two agricultural seasons (post- and pre-harvest), information on dietary intakes among pregnant women in their last trimester was collected. Neonatal anthropometry was then collected at health facilities upon delivery.
Results showed inadequate intakes of most nutrients, and dietary intakes varied according to seasons. The dietary diversity score only correlated to nutrient adequacy in the pre-harvest season. Increased maternal energy intake from fat was associated with larger neonatal length and abdominal circumference, whereas increased maternal energy intake from carbohydrates was associated with the opposite effects. Vitamin C and frequency of milk intake showed positive associations with birth weight. Dietary diversity scores did not show significant associations to birth size. Birth weight and abdominal circumference showed seasonal variations.
These findings indicate a need to improve maternal diets in this area and show that it is important to consider seasonality when planning dietary interventions in this area.
Additional information
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