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Exploring nutrition literacy in relation to nulliparous pregnant women's internet use
Abstract   Peer reviewed

Exploring nutrition literacy in relation to nulliparous pregnant women's internet use

Catherine Robichaud, Judith Maher and Elizabeth Swanepoel
Nutrition & dietetics, Vol.72(Supplement 1), p.62
Dietitians Association of Australian National Conference, 32nd (Perth, Australia, 13-May-2015–16-May-2015)
2015
url
https://doi.org/10.1111/1747-0080.12181View
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Abstract

Nutrition and Dietetics Public Health and Health Services Food Sciences online nutrition literacy pregnant women
Pregnancy is a life stage when women may become more aware of the health benefits of nutrition and engage in nutrition-related information seeking practices. The Internet is an increasingly popular source of pregnancy nutrition-related information and can provide additional information to that supplied by health practitioners during antenatal appointments. The pregnant woman's degree of online nutrition literacy can have major implications regarding the types of information sourced and how the understanding of that information contributes to existing nutrition knowledge. The aim of this study was to build on previous studies to explore nutrition literacy in relation to nulliparous pregnant women's Internet use. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 nulliparous pregnant women. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. All participants had accessed the Internet during their pregnancy for nutrition-related information at least once. Women placed a high level of importance on sourcing reputable web sites and finding evidence of 'trustworthiness'. Participants preferred web sites and applications that were easy to navigate and presented information clearly. Narrative, paradigmatic and a combination of those communication forms were used at least once by all participants and satisfied different needs. Health practitioners have a responsibility to establish a more active online presence by connecting with popular baby-related web sites and applications, or strive to improve existing nutrition-related web sites, in order to appeal to a more diverse population of pregnant women. Health practitioners have an opportunity to help improve women's nutrition literacy by recommending evidence based websites appropriate for the individual.

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