Gestational Body Mass Gain and Mental Health During Pregnancy Among Cisgender Heterosexual Women: An Objectification Theory Perspective

Pregnancy is marked by visible bodily changes such as weight gain. Guided by objectification theory, this study aimed to test whether gestational body mass gain—an indicator of visible bodily transformation—is associated with perceived interpersonal objectification experiences that position one's body as an object of appearance-based evaluation. These experiences may, in turn, be related to greater self-objectification, which may subsequently correlate with poorer mental health (i.e., depressive symptoms, disordered eating, and sexual dysfunction). The sample included 399 heterosexual, cisgender pregnant women in their second to third trimester who had not previously given birth ( M age = 29.97, range = 19–48). As predicted, path analysis revealed that greater gestational body mass gain was associated with perceived interpersonal objectification, which in turn was related to self-objectification, which then was directly associated with all three mental health outcomes. The association between self-objectification and disordered eating was indirectly explained through body shame and interoceptive awareness, while self-objectification's association with sexual dysfunction was indirectly explained through interoceptive awareness. These findings support the applicability of objectification theory to pregnancy, underscoring the need to reduce weight and appearance-focused practices and foster health-oriented perceptions of pregnant bodies. Finally, findings highlight the importance of public health efforts to normalize pregnancy-related body mass changes.