Israeli and British women well-being and eating behaviours in pregnancy and the postpartum

Objectives: The study had two main objectives: (a) track changes in self-esteem, eating behaviours and body satisfaction from early pregnancy to 24 months postpartum and (b) to compare changes by context (Israel vs. UK) and maternal body mass index (BMI).

Background: High maternal BMI is associated with negative body image and restrained eating, which are experienced differently across cultures.

Methods: 156 pregnant women were recruited from Israel and the UK. Seventy-three women were followed up every six months from early postpartum and until 24 months following birth. Women completed questionnaires assessing self-esteem (RSEQ), body image (BIS/BIDQ) and eating behaviours (DEBQ) and self-reported weights and heights so that BMI could be calculated.

Results: Women with higher BMI had higher levels of self-esteem and were less satisfied with their body. Healthy-weight women were more likely to lose all of their retained pregnancy weight compared to overweight and obese women. Self-esteem, body image and eating behaviours remained stable from pregnancy until 24 months postpartum. No significant differences were found for any measure by context.

Conclusion: BMI was the strongest predictor of self-esteem and body dissatisfaction and a higher BMI predicted less weight loss postpartum.