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Objectives: To determine the feasibility of using personal digital assistant (PDA)-based technology for tracking and analysis of food intake in low-income pregnant women. Design: Descriptive. Participants provided an initial 24-hour dietary recall and recorded their food intake using a PDA-based software program for 2 days. Setting: Recruitment occurred during the prenatal intake visit at a health department-sponsored Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) clinic. Participants: Nonprobability sampling was used to recruit 10 women. Variable Measured: Demographics and a satisfaction rating scale for the 2 food recording methods. A Healthy Eating Index (HEI) was calculated for each food record. Analysis: Scores of the satisfaction rating scales were summarized. Paired t tests were used to analyze differences in HEIs obtained from the participants' 24-hour recall and PDA-based food records. Results: The PDA was significantly easier to use compared to the 24-hour recall, and no significant differences in ease of remembering food intake between these methods was noted. Most women liked the PDA and felt it was more accurate than 24-hour recalls. Results showed no significant difference in mean HEI scores between food records from 24-hour recall to PDA. Conclusions and Implications: PDA-based software may be an acceptable method for obtaining food records to provide more accurate assessments of dietary intake in this vulnerable population.

Clarifying barriers to dietary intake may identify factors that place pregnant women at risk for complications. This methodological study assessed the psychometric properties of the Barriers to Healthy Eating Scale. Item generation was based on constructs in Pender's health promotion model. The instrument was tested in two separate samples of pregnant women. Content validity was assessed, and construct validity testing resulted in an expected negative relationship between scores on the Barriers to Healthy Eating Scale and the Nutrition subscale of the Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile-II. Factor analysis resulted in a 5-factor scale that explained 73% of the variance. Alpha coefficients for the total scale ranged from .73 to .77, and subscales ranged from .48 to .99. Test-retest reliability for the total scale was .79. The Barriers to Healthy Eating Scale appears to be a reliable and valid instrument to assess barriers that may impede healthy eating in pregnant women. Keywords: nutrition; pregnant women; low income; barriers

Maternal love may be a function of role attainment during the latter stages of pregnancy. Researchers found that most of the 136 women with a positive prenatal attachment to their unborn also had positive perceptions of themselves as mothers and their baby after the birth. Ten percent of the mothers were diagnosed with postnatal depression which was negatively related to all measures of maternal identity. Prenatal attachment also predicts the competency in infant feeding and care, which could be an area of nursing intervention.

Normal birth is a physiologic event closely intertwined with culture. This article describes cultural differences in mode and place of delivery and choice of birth attendants for childbearing women. National rates of cesarean versus vaginal birth vary significantly. Establishing maternity waiting homes in rural areas and obtaining care from trained birth attendants are needed to ensure the safety of the mother and newborn during birth. Promoting normal birth requires integrating the sociocultural factors that effect a woman's choice of mode and place for birth and choice of birth attendants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Postpartum maternal health care is a neglected aspect of women's health care. This neglect is evident in the limited national health objectives and data related to maternal health. Missed opportunities for enhancing the health care of postpartum women occur in the scope of routine postpartum care. Differing perceptions of maternal needs between nurses and new mothers also contribute to inadequate health care. Therefore, collecting national data on postpartum maternal morbidity, reforming postpartum care policies, providing holistic and flexible maternal health care, encouraging family support and involvement in support groups, and initiating educational programs are recommended. Further research is needed on issues related to postpartum maternal health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social media use related to chronic disease has become pervasive, yet little research has been done to examine how social media is currently used by healthcare consumers or how to best use various social media platforms to improve health outcomes. The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of Instagram use for image sharing related to #rheumatoidarthritis. A visual ethnography approach using content analysis was completed. Images for analysis (n = 106) were randomly selected, using the Instagram public search feature, during seven distinct periods. Content analysis, conducted by two coders, was used to identify categories and provide a sentiment analysis of the images. Approximately 75% of the images were determined to be positive by both coders. Social interaction and self-expression were the most frequently identified categories, suggesting that individuals use Instagram primarily for sharing awareness, sharing encouragement, and self-expression regarding rheumatoid arthritis. This finding is consistent with the use of Instagram for social networking and self-promotion. This study reveals new insights about how Instagram serves as a social, personal, and health-related information sharing platform particularly for those who may be socially isolated due to rheumatoid arthritis., (Copyright © 2020 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Accurately assessing dietary intake is an essential component of international health research to identify nutritional deviations that may place people at risk for developing chronic diseases. Accurate assessment may be hampered by failure to address known measurement problems with traditional dietary assessment tools. This article describes the application and advantages and disadvantages of 5 frequently used dietary assessment methods, discusses the management of measurement error common to each, and recommends use of these methods in community-based health research. Using complementary assessment methods at multiple measurement points enhances the reliability of the findings. Assessing overall dietary quality is consistent with a holistic approach to interventions designed to improve health and is a valuable methodology for nutritional research. Using innovative approaches may more accurately identify dietary patterns that contribute to disease development. Although complex, examining nutritional intake in health research is essential to determining an individual's disease risk status and response to treatment.

Postpartum maternal health care is a neglected aspect of women's health care. This neglect is evident in the limited national health objectives and data related to maternal health. Missed opportunities for enhancing the health care of postpartum women occur in the scope of routine postpartum care. Differing perceptions of maternal needs between nurses and new mothers also contribute to inadequate health care. Therefore, collecting national data on postpartum maternal morbidity, reforming postpartum care policies, providing holistic and flexible maternal health care, encouraging family support and involvement in support groups, and initiating educational programs are recommended. Further research is needed on issues related to postpartum maternal health.