Pregnant Veggie Study – Study on vegan nutrition for pregnant women in Germany
Duration: October 2019 to September 2021
Funding: IFPE, BKK ProVita
Principal investigator: Katharina Feuerlein
Project partners: Herdecke Community Hospital, Witten-Herdecke University, BKK ProVita
Study design
To date, there have been hardly any studies that have compared the nutritional status of pregnant vegan women with pregnant omnivorous women. In addition, studies are lacking regarding health parameters in newborns of vegan and omnivorous women. The aim of the PREGGIE study was to close this research gap. For this purpose, nutrient and nutrient status of the participants were determined using blood and urine biomarkers.
In two study centers (Witten-Herdecke and Hamburg-Othmarschen, Germany), blood samples and spot urine samples were collected twice (during the 9th to 16th as well as the 35th to 38th weeks of pregnancy, respectively). Furthermore, 3-day weighed dietary records were obtained for the same two periods in order to estimate nutrient intake. In addition, the participants provided data on body weight during pregnancy as well as health parameters of their newborns (birth weight, head circumference, body length, and APGAR score).
The data are currently being analyzed.