Comparison of Blood Sugar Control and Dietary Adherence in Pregnant Women With and Without the Use of Real-Time Food Photography

Subject Areas : Nut

J Hejazi ^{1 *} , B Ghobadian ² , Sh Naserpour ³ , َA Rezaie ⁴ , E Hejazi ⁵

1 -
2 - Zanjan University of Medical Sciences
3 - Zanjan University of Medical Sciences
4 - Zanjan University of Medical Sciences
5 - Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences

Received: 2025-02-05 Accepted : 2025-05-20 Published : 2025-03-05

Keywords: Blood Sugar, Diet, Gestational Diabetes, Real-Time Food Photography,

Abstract :

Introduction: This study examines the effect of real-time food photography compared to standard dietary management on blood glucose control and dietary adherence in women with gestational diabetes.

Materials and Methods: In this study, 65 women with gestational diabetes were randomly assigned to two groups: intervention (n=21) and control (n=44). An appropriate diet was designed for both groups. In the intervention group, participants photographed their meals before and after consumption using their smartphones and sent the images to the researcher. The researcher evaluated the compliance of the consumed food with the prescribed diet and provided feedback. After two weeks, both groups completed a dietary adherence questionnaire. Fasting blood samples and samples one and two hours after a glucose tolerance test were collected before and after the intervention to compare changes in blood glucose levels between the groups.

Results: Fasting blood glucose, one-hour, and two-hour glucose levels significantly decreased in the intervention group compared to before the intervention (p<0.001, p=0.035, and p=0.003, respectively). These parameters also significantly decreased in the control group after dietary management (p<0.001). However, there was no significant difference in the changes in fasting, one-hour, and two-hour blood glucose levels between the two groups (p=0.088, p=0.487, and p=0.062, respectively). The diet adherence score in the control group was higher than in the intervention group (67.57 vs. 60.14 out of 63).

Conclusion: Adherence to a proper diet effectively controls blood glucose in women with gestational diabetes; however, real-time food photography did not demonstrate a greater effect on blood glucose reduction compared to standard dietary management alone.

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