What is Pregorexia?
Something that the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics sent out in their daily news this past Thursday was an article about "Pregorexia". Which is a media coined term that described pregnant mothers that are extremely obsessed about dieting and exercising to the point where there are signs of an eating disorder. This really interest me because of my rotation at a Women, Infant and Children's clinic that I am experiencing right now. The article goes on to talk about an eating disorders specialist and trauma therapist that experienced "pregorexia" while pregnant with her second child. She intensely worked out every day and restricted her calorie intake even though her doctor had ordered her not to due to uterine bleeding. She only gained 18 pounds compared to her first when she gained 32 pounds. It is recommended that you gain 25-35 pounds depending on your pre-pregnancy weight. Her child developed seizures due to the lack of nutrition during gestation. In a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association describes that a "low birth weight followed by rapid postnatal catch-up growth can be a risk for metabolic syndrome in adulthood" for a new born.
Although RDs in the article say that they have not seen severe cases of "pregorexia" and it is something that the media is focusing on more. But there needs to be more nutrition education for pregnant women so they can be able to gain weight healthfully by eating a balanced diet high in iron, vitamin D, vitamin E, calcium and potassium. These resources are available for women that are on WIC but doctors should be able to communicate to patients that do not qualify for WIC nutrition education. This is also an opportunity for RDs to express their expertise and help women gain a healthy weight during pregnancy.
The link to the CNN article is here: http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/20/
Also this is the article from the Journal of the American Dietetic Association: http://www.journals.
You have to sign into eatright.org in order to access the article.
TD
Although RDs in the article say that they have not seen severe cases of "pregorexia" and it is something that the media is focusing on more. But there needs to be more nutrition education for pregnant women so they can be able to gain weight healthfully by eating a balanced diet high in iron, vitamin D, vitamin E, calcium and potassium. These resources are available for women that are on WIC but doctors should be able to communicate to patients that do not qualify for WIC nutrition education. This is also an opportunity for RDs to express their expertise and help women gain a healthy weight during pregnancy.
The link to the CNN article is here: http://www.cnn.com/2013/11/20/
Also this is the article from the Journal of the American Dietetic Association: http://www.journals.
You have to sign into eatright.org in order to access the article.
TD
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