Assessment of comparative study of average food intake by the pregnant women

Adequate maternal nutrient intake during pregnancy is important to ensure satisfactory birth outcomes. The present study describes & evaluates the average food intake by pregnant women from the Marathwada region. The total selected respondents were 480 from urban and rural areas of the Marathwada region. A purposive sampling technique was used to select pregnant women with a 0–9-month gestation period. The result find that the consumption of pulses was higher inrural areas (44.5g) than urban area (39-04g). The ICMR recommended (55g.) per day pulses for pregnant women. The result also revealed that the consumption of the average mean value of leafy vegetables from rural and urban areas was 36.45- and 55.72 g respectively. The ICMR recommended 100g of leafy vegetables Per day for pregnant women. The result also shows that a very small amount of milk was consumed by the selected pregnant women in rural areas. It may be due to poverty, lack of knowledge regarding Nutrition, and lack of purchasing power. This study highlights the need to develop programs to improve the intake of food during pregnancy to optimize their health and that of their infants.