The Need for Culturally Responsive Nutritional Counselling for Pregnant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women in Australia

Lina Jalloub; Stephanie Gilbert; Clare Collins; Marc T. P. Adam; Mieka Thorogood; Tahlia Smith; Janinne Gliddon; Serena St Clair; Nicole Turner; Rhonda Marriott; Roz Walker; Kym M. Rae; on behalf of Deadly Diets Indigenous Steering Committee

doi:10.3390/ijerph22071043

Back

The Need for Culturally Responsive Nutritional Counselling for Pregnant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women in Australia

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

The Need for Culturally Responsive Nutritional Counselling for Pregnant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women in Australia

Lina Jalloub, Stephanie Gilbert, Clare Collins, Marc T. P. Adam, Mieka Thorogood, Tahlia Smith, Janinne Gliddon, Serena St Clair, Nicole Turner, Rhonda Marriott, …

International journal of environmental research and public health, Vol.22(7), 1043

2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22071043

Files and links (1)

pdf

Published711.80 kBDownload View

Published (Version of Record)CC BY V4.0, Open Access

Abstract

Indigenous Australians

Aboriginal Australians

Torres Strait Islander Australians

First Nations Australian

perinatal nutrition

dietitians

access to health services

Access to high-quality, culturally responsive nutrition advice during pregnancy is necessary for optimal health outcomes for mothers and babies. Evidence indicates that age, education and access to trained healthcare practitioners have a positive correlation with healthy food intake and positive outcomes. There are limited studies that discuss the importance of providing culturally responsive nutrition advice to pregnant Indigenous women. Therefore, this paper investigates the sources from which Indigenous women access nutrition information, assesses its adequacy in meeting needs, and identifies the effective ways to deliver this information. This study took place in Queensland (QLD), New South Wales (NSW), and Western Australia (WA), which were chosen to represent diverse cultural communities. A total of 103 participants were recruited, including Indigenous women and healthcare practitioners. Focus groups were audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed. Participants indicated that pregnant women are highly interested in improving their nutrition knowledge during pregnancy and actively seek information from their healthcare practitioners and dietitians. Findings suggested dissatisfaction with the information received, as it failed to address their needs. Results of this paper call for an urgent increased presence of community dietitians in antenatal clinics dedicated to Indigenous pregnant women as an additional way to provide families with the information they need for healthy pregnancies.

Details

Title: The Need for Culturally Responsive Nutritional Counselling for Pregnant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Women in Australia
Authors/Creators: Lina Jalloub - Mater Research
Stephanie Gilbert - The University of Queensland
Clare Collins - University of Newcastle Australia
Marc T. P. Adam - University of Newcastle Australia
Mieka Thorogood - Mater Research
Tahlia Smith
Janinne Gliddon - Murdoch University
Serena St Clair
Nicole Turner - Institute for Urban Indigenous Health
Rhonda Marriott - Murdoch University
Roz Walker - Murdoch University
Kym M. Rae - The University of Queensland
on behalf of Deadly Diets Indigenous Steering Committee
Publication Details: International journal of environmental research and public health, Vol.22(7), 1043
Publisher: MDPI
Identifiers: 991005792410607891
Murdoch Affiliation: Ngangk Yira Institute for Change
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

Metrics

9 File views/ downloads

20 Record Views