Effectiveness of Nutritional Education on Knowledge, Attitude, and Food Choices Regarding Diet among Pregnant Women in Ibadan Semi-Urban Areas, Oyo State

This study examined the effectiveness of nutritional education on knowledge, attitude and choiceof food regarding diet among pregnant women in Ibadan Semi-urban LGAs, Oyo State. The mainobjectives were to determine baseline knowledge, attitude and food choices regarding diet in theTheory of Planned Behavior. The study addressed gaps in maternal health education by targetingmisconceptions about food choices and improving nutrition literacy in low-resource settings. Aquasi-experimental design was employed, involving 118 pregnant women selected purposivelyfrom antenatal clinics in semi-urban LGAs assigned equally into experimental and control groups.A structured questionnaire, followed by an eight-week nutritional education program for theexperimental group and post-test and follow-up assessments were conducted, and data wereanalyzed using descriptive statistics, paired t-tests, and ANCOVA at a 0.05 significance level. Thefindings showed that After intervention, the experimental group showed higher scores inknowledge (18.8 vs. 16.2), attitude (44.7 vs. 39.4), and food choices (48.4 vs. 41.1). Theexperimental group recorded significant improvements between pre- and post-test: Knowledgeincreased by 2.4 points (p<0.001). Attitude increased by 5.0 points (p<0.001). Food choicesimproved by +7.4 points (p<0.001 These differences were highly significant (p<0.001), showinga positive effect of nutritional education. In conclusion, structured nutritional educationsignificantly improved and sustained maternal dietary knowledge. It is recommended that nutritioneducation be integrated into routine antenatal care. The study was limited to a semi-urbanpopulation, reducing generalizability.