Food supplementation of pregnant women at risk of malnutrition and their newborns' responsiveness to stimulation.
Pregnant women at risk of malnutrition were enrolled in a health care programme in Colombia, South America, and were randomly assigned to a group receiving supplementary food or to a control group at the beginning of the third trimester of pregnancy. There were no differences between the groups in social or nutritional variables. Supplementary food was found to have an effect on infants' reactions to mild aversive stimulation and their degree of irritability. Infants born to non-supplemented mothers generally responded more irritably to removal of a nipple and to the application of a cold disc to the abdomen. Female infants of non-supplemented mothers also recovered more slowly than the supplemented group from crying in response to both removal of nipple and the cold disc. The findings are believed to show a maturational effect of maternal diet during the last trimester of pregnancy.
D002652:Child Behavior; D003105:Colombia; D003448:Crying; D004044:Dietary Proteins / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009748:Nutrition Disorders / Q000178:diet therapy*; D010812:Physical Stimulation; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000178:diet therapy*; D011263:Pregnancy Trimester, Third; D011930:Reaction Time; D012306:Risk; D012737:Sex Factors; D013391:Sucking Behavior
D004044:Dietary Proteins