Prevalence and determinants of dietary practices among pregnant women in eastern Ethiopia

INTRODUCTION: Appropriate dietary practices in pregnancy are critical to meet the increased metabolic and physiological demands; however, information about dietary practices among pregnant women, particularly rural residents, is limited. The study aimed to assess the level of appropriate dietary practices and associated determinants among pregnant women in Haramaya District, eastern Ethiopia, 2021. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 448 pregnant women in Haramaya District, Eastern Ethiopia. Data was collected through face-to-face interviews by trained research assistants, using a validated frequency questionnaire. The pregnant women were labeled as “appropriate dietary practice” when they consumed at least four meals daily, had a good food variety score, high dietary diversity score, and high consumption of animal source foods during the reference period. Otherwise, they were defined as “inappropriate.” A Poisson regression model with robust variance estimation was used to investigate the association of the independent variables with the dietary practice. An adjusted prevalence ratio with a 95% confidence interval was reported to show an association using a p-value < 0.05. RESULTS: The appropriate dietary practice among the study participants was 15.2% (95% CI = 12–18%). Of the respondents, 29.46, 37.5, and 24.7% had a high dietary diversity, high food variety score, and high consumption of animal source foods. The appropriate dietary practice was more prevalent among merchant women (APR = 2.07; 95% CI 1.07–4.02) and those whose husbands have at least a high school educational level (APR = 1.96; 95% CI 1.06–3.46). However, the prevalence of appropriate dietary practice was significantly lower among those who chewed khat (APR = 0.58; 95% CI 0.37–0.90) and among respondents who reported restriction of the intake of some foods (APR = 0.36; 95% CI 0.20–0.65). CONCLUSION: We found sup-optimal appropriate dietary practice among pregnant women in this predominantly rural setting. Additionally, the lower appropriate dietary practice was observed among women who reported chewing khat and experienced restriction of dietary consumption during pregnancy. Therefore, nutrition policy programs and interventions aimed at encouraging maternal nutritional guidance and counseling are recommended.