Higginbottom, Gina M.A., Valliantos, Helen, Forgeron, Joan, Gibbons, Donna, Mamede, Fabiana and Bariola, Rubina
(2014)
Food choices and practices during pregnancy of immigrant women with high-risk pregnancies in Canada: a pilot study.
BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 14
(370).
pp. 1-13.
ISSN 1471-2393
Full text not available from this repository.
Abstract
Background: Immigrant women may be regarded as a vulnerable population with respect to access and navigation of maternity care services. They may encounter difficulties when accessing culturally safe and appropriate maternity care, which may be further exacerbated by language difficulties and discriminatory practices or attitudes. The project aimed to understand ethnocultural food and health practices and how these intersect in a particular social context of cultural adaptation and adjustment in order to improve the care-giving capacities of health practitioners working in multicultural perinatal clinics.
Methods: This four-phase study employed a case study design allowing for multiple means of data collection and different units of analysis. Phase one consists of a scoping review of the literature. Phases two and three incorporate pictorial representations of food choices with semi-structured photo-elicited interviews. This study was undertaken at a Prenatal and Obstetric Clinic, in an urban Canadian city. In phase four, the research team will inform the development of culturally appropriate visual tools for health promotion.
Results: Five themes were identified: (a) Perceptions of Health, (b) Social Support (c) Antenatal Foods (d) Postnatal Foods and (e) Role of Health Education. These themes provide practitioners with an understanding of the cultural differences that affect women’s dietary choices during pregnancy. The project identified building collaborations between practitioners and families of pregnant immigrant women to be of utmost importance in supporting healthy pregnancies, along with facilitating social support for pregnant and breastfeeding mothers.
Conclusion: In a multicultural society that contemporary Canada is, it is challenging for health practitioners to understand various ethnocultural dietary norms and practices. Practitioners need to be aware of customary practices of the ethnocultural groups that they work with, while simultaneously recognizing the variation within—not everyone follows customary practices, individuals may pick and choose which customary guidelines they follow. What women choose to eat is also influenced by their own experiences, access to particular foods, socioeconomic status, family context, and so on.
The pilot study demonstrated the efficacy of the employed research strategies and we subsequently acquired funding for a national study.
| Item Type: |
Article
|
| RIS ID: |
https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/741639 |
| Additional Information: |
This paper focused on a hard to reach population and used an innovative photo-voice methodology rarely published in the scientific literature and therefore makes a unique contribution.
Co-authored by colleagues at the University of Alberta, the Lois Hole Women's Hospital, Edmonton, Canada and the University of Sao Paolo, Brazil.
I supervised Dr Mamede for one year as Post-doctoral Fellow funding for this position was gained FAEPSE, Brazil.
Local funding was received for this pilot which subsequently led to the acquisition of national funding from the Canadian Institute for Health Research. I was PI for this study. |
| Keywords: |
Pregnancy, Food Choices, Immigrant Women, Perinatal |
| Schools/Departments: |
University of Nottingham, UK > Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > School of Health Sciences |
| Identification Number: |
10.1186/s12884-014-0370-6 |
| Depositing User: |
Higginbottom, Gina
|
| Date Deposited: |
21 Jul 2016 14:14 |
| Last Modified: |
04 May 2020 16:59 |
| URI: |
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/id/eprint/35244 |
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