Preferences of women for web-based nutritional information in pregnancy

•Women use a range of unregulated online nutritional resources during pregnancy.•There is minimal use of publically funded or academically supported resources.•Women are at risk of receiving dietary advice which is not scientifically based.•This study identified the features women want from a web-based nutrition resource.•These findings may assist in the design of future evidence-based applications.

ObjectivesDuring pregnancy, women are increasingly turning to web-based resources for information. This study examined the use of web-based nutritional information by women during pregnancy and explored their preferences.Study designCross-sectional observational study.MethodsWomen were enrolled at their convenience from a large maternity hospital. Clinical and sociodemographic details were collected and women's use of web-based resources was assessed using a detailed questionnaire.ResultsOf the 101 women, 41.6% were nulliparous and the mean age was 33.1 years (19-47 years). All women had internet access and only 3% did not own a smartphone. Women derived pregnancy-related nutritional information from a range of online resources, most commonly: What to Expect When You're Expecting (15.1%), Babycenter (12.9%), and Eumom (9.7%). However, 24.7% reported using Google searches. There was minimal use of publically funded or academically supported resources. The features women wanted in a web-based application were recipes (88%), exercise advice (71%), personalized dietary feedback (37%), social features (35%), videos (24%) and cooking demonstrations (23%).ConclusionsThis survey highlights the risk that pregnant women may get nutritional information from online resources which are not evidence-based. It also identifies features that women want from a web-based nutritional resource.