Behaviour change in overweight and obese pregnancy: a decision tree to support the development of antenatal lifestyle interventions

• Published in: Public health nutrition Vol. 20; no. 14; pp. 2642 - 2648
• Main Authors: Ainscough, Kate M, Lindsay, Karen L, O’Sullivan, Elizabeth J, Gibney, Eileen R, McAuliffe, Fionnuala M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 01-10-2017
• Subjects: Behavior; Body Mass Index; Body weight; Clinical outcomes; Decision Trees; Developmental stages; Diabetes; Diet; Exercise; Female; Health Behavior; Humans; Intervention; Interventions; Life Style; Lifestyles; Obesity; Obesity - epidemiology; Overweight; Overweight - epidemiology; Perceptions; Physical fitness; Pregnancy; Prenatal Care; Prevalence; Publishing; Qualitative research; Researchers; Review; Review Articles; Studies; Taxonomy; Womens health; Pregnancy; Maternal behaviour; Lifestyle interventions; Health behaviour; Behaviour change
• ISSN: 1368-9800; 1475-2727
• DOI: 10.1017/S136898001700129X

Antenatal healthy lifestyle interventions are frequently implemented in overweight and obese pregnancy, yet there is inconsistent reporting of the behaviour-change methods and behavioural outcomes. This limits our understanding of how and why such interventions were successful or not.
The current paper discusses the application of behaviour-change theories and techniques within complex lifestyle interventions in overweight and obese pregnancy. The authors propose a decision tree to help guide researchers through intervention design, implementation and evaluation. The implications for adopting behaviour-change theories and techniques, and using appropriate guidance when constructing and evaluating interventions in research and clinical practice are also discussed.
To enhance the evidence base for successful behaviour-change interventions during pregnancy, adoption of behaviour-change theories and techniques, and use of published guidelines when designing lifestyle interventions are necessary. The proposed decision tree may be a useful guide for researchers working to develop effective behaviour-change interventions in clinical settings. This guide directs researchers towards key literature sources that will be important in each stage of study development.