Leveraging Action to Support Dissemination of the Pregnancy Weight Gain Guidelines

Since 1990, when the last guidelines for weight gain during pregnancy were issued, the average body weight of women entering their childbearing years has increased considerably, with a greater percentage of these women now classified as overweight or obese. Women of childbearing age are also more likely to have chronic conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes and to be at risk for poor maternal and child health outcomes. All of these factors increase the likelihood of poor pregnancy outcomes for women and their infants. As part of the continuing effort of The Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the National Research Council (NRC) to promote the revised pregnancy weight gain guidelines recommended in their 2009 study Weight Gain During Pregnancy: Reexamining the Guidelines, the IOM and NRC convened a workshop in March, 2013, to engage interested stakeholders, organizations, and federal agencies in a discussion of issues related to encouraging behavior change that would reflect the updated guidelines on weight gain during pregnancy. During the workshop, the IOM and NRC presented newly developed information resources to support guidance based on the recommendations of the 2009 report. Leveraging Action to Support Dissemination of the Pregnancy Weight Gain Guidelines summarizes the workshop’s keynote address and the various presentations and discussions from the workshop, highlighting issues raised by presenters and attendees. Interested stakeholders, organizations, health professionals, and federal agencies met to discuss issues related to encouraging behavior change that would reflect the updated guidelines on weight gain during pregnancy. This report discusses conceptual products as well as products developed for dissemination, ways to facilitate and support behavior change to achieve healthy weight pre- and postpregnancy, and how to put the weight gain guidelines into action to implement change.