Nutritional Knowledge about Maternal and Newborn Health among Physiotherapists during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract

Adequate nutrition before and during pregnancy, as well as postpartum, is among the major contributors to maternal and newborn health. Physiotherapists' knowledge of this area is still scarce, although their clinical practice has been linked to newborns' neuropsychomotor development, which, in turn, is influenced by maternal health and nutritional status. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the nutritional knowledge of physiotherapists regarding maternal and newborn health. A total of 70 Brazilian physiotherapists (32.2 ± 6.0 years; 72.9% females) were evaluated between November 2019 and February 2020 for their sociodemographic characteristics, professional experience, and nutritional knowledge about maternal and newborn health through a validated questionnaire personally administered by the same trained researcher. Most of the physiotherapists had graduated but had no specialization in maternal and child physiotherapy (96.1% of the females and all the males). The nutritional knowledge about maternal and newborn health was significantly different between the female and male health professionals, as well as between the less and more experienced participants, i.e., female physiotherapists and the more experienced ones had more correct answers on the nutritional questionnaire than the male and less experienced physiotherapists, respectively (p < 0.05). Our results open an interesting window for the future education and training of Brazilian physiotherapists in nutrition.

Keywords: maternal health; newborn health; nutrition; nutritional knowledge; physiotherapist; pregnancy.

Figure 1

General framework related (but not limited) to women’s nutritional status before (pink images) and during (green images) pregnancy ((A) and (B), respectively) and postpartum (yellow images) (C), and other potential variables influencing fetal and child growth and development, respectively (adapted from Silva and Rodríguez, 2022) [5]. An appropriate nutritional status, which is associated with frequent clinical and nutrition supervision, is crucial for the maintenance and the promotion of good health in three important areas of women’s health and well-being (A–C). The maternal age, genetic profile, socioeconomic status, and environmental variables (including the influence of the pandemic caused by COVID-19) may affect maternal health and fetal growth and development (A). In addition, diet and food security, dietary supplementation, as well as the maintenance of an active lifestyle and good sleep hygiene can also be critical during pregnancy and for the child’s growth and development (B). To respond to the woman’s energy and nutritional needs, as well as those of the newborn (C), clinical and nutritional supervision are required to assess the maternal and newborn’s health and well-being.