Eating disorders Among Pregnant Women Attending the Antenatal Clinic of Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria.

Abstract

Background: In developing countries, there has been an upsurge of eating disorders necessitating conscious efforts to diagnose it in pregnancy due to its impact on the mother and the developing fetus. Eating disorders are extreme departures from normal eating behaviour such as restricting food, binge eating, and purging, as well as disturbances in body weight and shape. Women are motivated to make positive changes for their unborn child during pregnancy therefore the antenatal period is an opportunity to utilize.

Method: This was a cross-sectional study conducted to determine the prevalence of eating disorders in pregnant women using the SCOFF questionnaire. The respondents were recruited from the antenatal clinic of Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria, Nigeria between August and October 2018. The data was analyzed using IBM SPSS version 20.

Result: The prevalence of eating disorders in pregnancy was 25.2%. Thirty-two (84.2%) of the respondents with eating disorders felt they had lost control over how much they eat. This study showed that 30 (78.9%) out of the respondents disclosed that food dominates their life. The ages of the respondents with eating disorders in pregnancy ranged between 15-39 years with a mean age of 28.2 years (SD: ± 5 years). Over 80% of the respon­dents were below the age of 35 years. Sixty percent of the respondents were aware of eating disorders in pregnancy.

Conclusion: There is a high prevalence eating disorders among pregnant women in our environment, and the antenatal period is an opportunity to identify such women for prompt referral to the mental health physicians to ensure continuity of care.

Keywords: Eating disorders, Pregnancy, Screening.