Empowerment of pregnant women to have a healthier dietary intake. The development, implementation and evaluation of an integral strategy

The overall goal of this research project is to improve the dietary intake of low socioeconomic status (SES) pregnant women. This project aims to develop, implement and evaluate an integral strategy that empowers low SES pregnant women to have a healthier dietary intake. This is relevant for both society and science, as maternal nutrition is crucial for optimal foetal development and population health. Pregnant women are receptive to changing dietary intake during pregnancy. Midwives acknowledge their potential role in promoting healthier dietary intake, but lack time and specific knowledge and skills for an integral strategy tailored to the needs of low SES pregnant women, their everyday life, family situation, and physical and social environment. Moreover, there is currently no integral strategy fitting concurrent antenatal care that focuses on empowering pregnant women to have a healthier dietary intake. In this project, such an integral strategy will be developed, implemented and evaluated jointly with all stakeholders, including pregnant women and their partners.