Afshan Shahid, Mahmood Ahmed, Farah Rashid, Mohammad Wasif Khan, Mahmoodur Rehman.
Pregnancy and food women beliefs & practices regarding food during pregnancy - a hospital based study.
Professional Med J Jan ;18(2):189-94.

Patients and methods: Sample size was 189 pregnant females who were attending the Antenatal Clinic, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics at Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi. This was calculated by computer software called Raosoft- a sample size calculator by keeping confidence level 95%, margin of error 5%, and response rate 86%. Simple Convenience Sampling technique was used. Results: 89% believed that there is an effect of food on pregnancy and 11% did not. Despite of high literacy rate (93%) there are certain strong food beliefs regarding pregnancy which have been practiced by pregnant ladies, which were effecting their food intake like hot, cold, badi and having difficult labour. Conclusions: All available resources for creating awareness among the masses regarding the importance of diet during pregnancy should be used properly by using all means of communication (especially mass media).

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