(P15-099-20) Greater Maternal Perceived Stress Levels Are Associated with a Higher Dietary Inflammatory Index Among Hispanic Pregnant Women

Objectives: Suboptimal diet quality has been reported in Hispanic pregnant women in the US, but the potential moderating role of maternal psychological state has not been considered. The aim of this study is to test whether maternal perceived stress in pregnancy moderates the association between ethnicity and the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII), a validated marker of the inflammatory potential of the diet.

Methods: N=195 pregnant women underwent detailed assessment of diet and psychological state at the beginning of the second trimester (mean(SD)=13(1.7) weeks). Dietary intake data from 24-hr diet recalls on 3 non-consecutive days were used to compute a mean DII score. Ecological Momentary Assessment of psychological state was performed in ambulatory settings using an electronic diary, with multiple daily entries over 4 consecutive days, from which a mean composite Perceived Stress Score (PSS) was derived. Maternal age, socioeconomic status (SES) score and self-reported pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) were included as covariates in the analysis of the effects of PSS, ethnicity, and PSS*ethnicity interaction on DII score.

Results: Hispanic pregnant women (N=87) had higher mean DII (0.56(1.81) vs -0.001(1.82), p=0.034) and PSS scores (1.14(0.61) vs 1.00(0.55), p=0.093) compared to women of non-Hispanic ethnicity (N=108). Hispanic women were also younger (26.33(6.30) vs 28.62(4.76) years, p=0.004) and of lower SES (2.67(0.83) vs 3.62(0.86), p=< 0.001), but pre-pregnancy BMI did not differ from non-Hispanic women (population mean=26.7 (6.55) Kg/m2). There was no significant main effect of ethnicity or PSS on DII after controlling for confounding factors. However, PSS was found to moderate the relationship between ethnicity and DII (p=0.018 for PSS*ethnicity interaction in adjusted model), such that Hispanic pregnant women consumed a more pro-inflammatory diet as perceived stress levels increased, while perceived stress had no influence on DII in non-Hispanic women.

Conclusions: Higher levels of perceived stress among Hispanic pregnant women may contribute to poorer quality dietary intake. The potential implications of the combined effects of poorer diet quality and higher stress levels on prenatal metabolism, inflammation and pregnancy outcomes in this minority group warrants further research.

Funding Sources: National Institute of Health: NICHD