# Impact of Mediterranean Diet Adherence in Early Pregnancy on Nausea, Vomiting, and Constipation

## TL;DR

This study explores whether following a Mediterranean diet early in pregnancy affects common digestive issues like nausea and constipation.

## Contribution

The study introduces a new non-pharmaceutical approach to managing maternal gastrointestinal symptoms during pregnancy.

## Key findings

- Baseline adherence to the Mediterranean diet was not significantly associated with reduced nausea, vomiting, or constipation during pregnancy.
- Nausea and vomiting prevalence decreased over time across all diet adherence groups, but constipation persisted.
- High adherence to the Mediterranean diet showed the most significant reduction in nausea and vomiting by the third trimester.

## Abstract

Common maternal digestive symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, and constipation during pregnancy, can impair pregnant women’s quality of life. The Mediterranean diet (MedDiet), characterized by a high consumption of olive oil, vegetables, fruits, legumes, and grains; moderate fish and dairy intake; and low meat consumption, could alleviate these symptoms. This study aims to study the prevalence of maternal digestive symptoms in the different pregnancy trimesters and to examine the association between baseline MedDiet adherence and the prevalence of maternal digestive symptoms during pregnancy.

A secondary analysis of the Walking Preg_Project trial was conducted in a cohort of adult Spanish pregnant women (N = 237) who provided data about MedDiet adherence and maternal digestive symptoms (nausea, vomiting, constipation) at baseline (12th ), 19th, and 32nd Gestational Week (GW). MedDiet adherence was appraised through a 13-item questionnaire and categorized into low, medium, and high adherence. Digestive symptoms were assessed by the Pregnancy Symptoms Inventory. The association between baseline MedDiet adherence and maternal digestive symptoms was evaluated through adjusted multinomial analysis.

Differences among MedDiet adherence categories were considerable during pregnancy. Some of the greatest decreases were observed in high adherence to MedDiet in comparison with low MedDiet adherence at 32nd GW vs. 19th GW for the prevalence of nausea (10.0% vs. 18.8%, p < 0.001) and vomiting (5.0% vs. 8.7%, p < 0.001). Constipation remained during pregnancy. There was no significant association between the baseline MedDiet adherence and maternal gastrointestinal symptoms.

Baseline adherence to the MedDiet was not proven to influence nausea, vomiting, and constipation during pregnancy. For all MedDiet adherence groups, nausea and vomiting prevalence decreased throughout pregnancy, but not constipation.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10995-025-04078-7.

Maternal gastrointestinal symptoms affect a large percentage of pregnant women during pregnancy. There are known different pharmaceutical measures against them, but very little is known about non-pharmaceutical ones. The MedDiet offers a broad range of food components that may collaborate to reduce gastrointestinal symptoms based on their physiology. Although the present study has not proven the influence of MedDiet on maternal gastrointestinal symptoms, the study adds a new line of research on this issue.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10995-025-04078-7.