title: Identifying healthy eating strategies in low-income pregnant women: applying a positive deviance model.
abstract: Using positive deviance methodology, we identified strategies that enabled some low-income pregnant women to eat healthy meals while others did not. We used a descriptive design consisting of small group interviews of low-income pregnant women and identified 6 of 18 women as eating healthy diets. Women with healthy diets knew to eat balanced meals, had family support, were willing to prepare foods that were different than other family members, and ate at home more frequently than women with unhealthy diets. Health care providers can use the positive deviance approach to guide the development of interventions to improve women's diets using community-specific solutions to enhance the health of mothers and infants.
authors.affiliation: Mennonite College of Nursing at Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois 61761, USA. erfowle@ilstu.edu
authors.forename: Eileen R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Fowles
authors.forename: Jennifer A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Hendricks
authors.forename: Lorraine O
authors.initials: LO
authors.lastname: Walker
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004034:Diet Surveys; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D039382:Maternal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D008429:Maternal Welfare; D008880:Midwifery / Q000592:standards; D009035:Mothers / Q000193:education* / Q000523:psychology; D052756:Nutritional Sciences / Q000193:education*; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D011203:Poverty; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000517:prevention & control; D011295:Prenatal Care / Q000379:methods*; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000008:administration & dosage; D014481:United States; D014815:Vitamins / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D014131:Trace Elements; D014815:Vitamins