Food packages and nutrition education improved pregnancy weight gain in Jagakarsa sub-District, Jakarta, Indonesia: a pilot study

The prevalence of low birth weight and stunting among infants in Indonesia remains high. Maternal nutritional status before pregnancy and weight gain during pregnancy critically affect the health status of infants. World Health Organization (WHO) recommended a balanced energy-protein (BEP) dietary supplement for pregnant women to reduce the risk of low birth weight of infant among the undernourished populations. A balanced energy-protein intervention are diverse and can be offered as food-based supplementation forms, commercially produced forms, food tokens, or vouchers. Although the Indonesian government implemented a supplementary food (biscuits) program for pregnant women, 35.4% of pregnant women did not consume all the provided biscuits. Therefore, there is a need to explore other alternatives, such as diversified food packages to improve gestational weight gain. This study aimed to determine the effect of nutrition education combined with food packages on the weight gain of pregnant women in Jakarta. This study was a non-randomized controlled trial consisting two groups: an intervention group and a control group. Seventy women were consecutively assigned to the intervention and control groups for a 2-month intervention period. The intervention group received nutritional education and food packages. The control group received the standard intervention given at the Primary Health Center (PHC), which was supplementary food in the form of biscuits. Statistical analysis was performed using multiple linear regression. Results showed that women who received food packages and nutritional education gained 1.15 kg more weight than those in the control group who did not receive these benefits. Study results also showed that pregnant women in the intervention group had higher intakes of energy (366 kcal), carbohydrates (66.4 g), vitamin B1 (0.14 mg), vitamin B6 (0.42 mg) and calcium 250 mg) compared to the control group. Over the two-month period, the average increase in body weight of women in the intervention group (3.6 kg) was significantly higher compared to women in the control group (2.7 kg). These findings underscore that intervention with food packages combined with nutritional education significantly increased the weight gain of pregnant women compared to the control group. Since the prevalence of stunting is steady, the Indonesian government needs to advise the local government to implement an alternative solution using food packages or locally sourced food supplementation to support adequate gestational weight gain. The findings from this study showed that free vouchers for food packages should be made available to pregnant women as a practical and impactful measure. Key words: pregnant women, food packages, nutritional education, gestational weight gain