Pilot study of prenatal community meal supplementation program demonstrates feasibility

Optimal nutrition is necessary for good pregnancy outcomes. Recently, there has been a renewed call to address nutritional status during pregnancy with the US Department of Agriculture including pregnant persons in their Dietary Guidelines for the first time in 2020. Food insecurity (FI) is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, including hypertension, decreased birth weight, and increased prenatal depression. These outcomes may be ameliorated with meal supplementation programs. Studies in low-income countries have demonstrated that nutrient and protein supplementation have a positive impact on outcomes such as low birth weight. Despite this evidence and calls from national societies in the United States to create community-based programs to alleviate FI, the effect of implementing a meal supplementation program within a US-based prenatal clinic is unknown. To address this knowledge gap, a pilot program that provided free meals from Meals on Wheels (MoW) for pregnant people with FI was initiated at an urban US prenatal clinic.