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Objective: To describe the experiences of weight stigma in prenatal clinical settings among high-risk pregnant women living with obesity and to obtain women's perspectives regarding changes to prenatal health care practices that may reduce weight stigma., Design: Qualitative descriptive study., Setting/local Problem: High-risk obstetrics clinic. Weight stigma experienced in prenatal clinical settings can negatively influence maternal health and well-being as well as communication with health care providers., Participants: Nine pregnant women with obesity who were receiving specialized prenatal care in their third trimester., Intervention/measurements: Women participated in semistructured telephone interviews. Data were inductively analyzed using a content analysis, whereby coded data were organized to represent experiences of or suggestions provided by pregnant women to reduce weight stigma in prenatal clinical settings., Results: Experiences of weight stigma included poor communication, generalizations made about health and lifestyle behaviors, and focusing only on excess body weight during clinical appointments as the cause of negative health outcomes. To reduce weight stigma, women suggested that health care providers practice sensitive communication, offer individualized care for weight management, and reduce the focus on body weight by also independently addressing comorbidities or other health indicators., Conclusion: Women interviewed for this study provided suggestions that can be implemented in prenatal clinical settings to reduce weight stigma and improve the delivery of equitable health care., (Copyright © 2021 AWHONN. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: As the prevalence of obesity increases, more women are at risk of potentially experiencing weight stigma in prenatal health care settings. The objective of this scoping review was to summarize the primary literature assessing potential causes of weight stigma in prenatal health care settings and synthesize recommendations for health care providers to improve clinical practice., Methods: A search strategy was developed combining the terms pregnancy, weight stigma, obesity, and prenatal care. A systematic search was completed in the following databases: Medline, EMBASE, PsycInfo, CINAHL, Opengrey, and Proquest., Results: Eighteen resources were included in this review, of which 17 were qualitative, and one was a mixed-methods study design. Weight stigma occurred in prenatal health care settings when providers: avoided weight-related discussions, assumed lifestyle behaviors, and had poor communication when discussing risks associated with obesity. Recommendations to prevent weight stigma included: offering sensitivity training to discuss obesity during pregnancy, implementing a patient-centred approach, including evaluating individual health behaviors, and providing educational resources to patients explaining potential risks and referrals., Conclusion: This review summarizes recommendations to eliminate weight stigma in prenatal health care settings., Practice Implications: These recommendations can be implemented in clinical practice and can improve the delivery of prenatal care., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest None to disclose., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Problem: Too much or too little gestational weight gain (GWG) can negatively impact maternal and fetal health, according to Institute of Medicine Guidelines., Background: Health care providers are key players in providing reliable evidence-informed prenatal advice related to appropriate GWG. However, there appears to be inconsistent GWG communication among healthcare providers during prenatal care., Aim: To determine pregnant women and new mothers' perceptions of healthcare provider GWG and dietary counselling during the pregnancy period., Methods: A reliable and validated cross-sectional electronic survey was administered to currently pregnant women and women who had recently given birth. The web-based questionnaire was self-administered and took 10-25min., Findings: A total of 1507 eligible women participated in the survey. More than half (57%) reported that their healthcare provider talked to them about personal weight gain limits. Of these participants, about a third (34%) of participants were counselled regularly at each or most visits. Among the women that were not counselled on personal GWG limits, over half (56%) reported that healthcare provider guidance would have been helpful to achieve their target weight. Less than half (45%) of participants reported that their healthcare providers discussed dietary requirements or changes in pregnancy., Discussion: These findings highlight areas for improvement in prenatal dialogue, which can support better outcomes for both mother and baby., Conclusion: A better understanding of pregnant and mothers' perceptions about weight and diet counselling is needed to understand what may need greater attention and clarification and to improve such dialogue., (Copyright © 2019 Australian College of Midwives. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Importance: Gestational weight gain (GWG) is an independent and modifiable factor for a healthy pregnancy. Gestational weight gain above or below the Institute of Medicine Guidelines has been shown to impact both maternal and fetal health (eg, gestational diabetes, hypertension, downstream obesity). Healthcare providers (HCPs) have the potential to be reliable sources of evidence-based weight information and advice during pregnancy., Objective: The aim of this study was to summarize the literature assessing GWG discussions between patients and their HCPs in a clinical setting to better understand the knowledge that is currently being exchanged., Evidence Acquisition: A literature review was conducted by searching Ovid Medline, CINAHL, and Embase databases. All relevant primary research articles in English that assessed GWG discussions were included, whereas intervention studies were excluded., Results: A total of 54 articles were included in this review. Although the overall prevalence and content of GWG counseling varied between studies, counseling was often infrequent and inaccurate. Healthcare providers tended to focus more on women experiencing obesity and excessive GWG, as opposed to the other body mass index categories or inadequate GWG. Women of higher socioeconomic status, older age, nulliparous, history of dieting, low physical activity, and those categorized as overweight/obese were more likely to receive GWG advice. Patients also reported receiving conflicting facts between different HCP disciplines., Conclusions: The evidence regarding GWG counseling in prenatal care remains variable, with discrepancies between geographic regions, patient populations, and HCP disciplines., Relevance: Healthcare providers should counsel their pregnant patients on GWG with advice that is concordant with the Institute of Medicine Guidelines.