One study suggests that pregnant women benefit from a Mediterranean diet

The results of the study showed that the Mediterranean diet could offer benefits such as reducing pregnancy-related weight gain and the risk of developing gestational diabetes in pregnant women.

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All women participating in the study were over 16 years of age, had a varied history and a metabolic risk factor. These include obesity, high blood pressure, chronic hypertension or hypertriglyceridemia.

This means that their chances of developing pregnancy-related complications were high. The researchers badigned dietary advice to pregnant women at 18, 20 and 28 weeks of age. Five hundred and ninety-three followed the diet while 612 formed the control group.

In general, the Mediterranean diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, extra virgin olive oil, unrefined grains and legumes, poultry and seafood. It is also low in red meat and processed foods. Often this implies that meals are treated as quiet social activities rather than precipitous events.

Researchers at Queen Mary University found that women on a Mediterranean diet were less likely to develop gestational diabetes. This condition affects between two and 10% of pregnant women in the United States. According to the Center for Disease Control, about half of women with gestational diabetes develop type 2 diabetes.

Gestational diabetes can also be a factor in pregnancy complications in pregnant women, such as high blood pressure. Women with gestational diabetes are more likely to give birth to children born fat, too early or by caesarean section.

Participants in the study who followed the Mediterranean diet saw their chances of developing gestational diabetes decreased by 35%. While the average weight gain of the control group was 8.3 kilograms (18.3 pounds), the average weight gain for women who followed the Mediterranean diet was 6.8 kilograms (15.0 pounds).

Although the study indicates that this diet reduces weight gain and decreases the risk of developing gestational diabetes in the mother, there appear to be some limitations. The Mediterranean diet does not seem to have any effect on the overall risk of complications for the mother or the child.

The authors of the study hope that more research will be done to discover more of the possible benefits of the Mediterranean diet for pregnant women. Further studies are needed to determine if this diet can reduce the risk of childhood obesity, asthma, allergies and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in the mother.