JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

The widespread availability of health information online, coupled with the ease of access to the internet, has led pregnant women to rely heavily on online sources for pregnancy-related guidance. The Internet-based information regarding nutrition enabled positive dietary change for pregnant women. Although there are some important sources for pregnant women to collect their health information, some information increases maternal anxiety and difficulties based on a lack of information. Moreover, some women become confused due to conflicts on the same topics from different websites. However, concerns about the reliability and impact of this information have surfaced, contributing to heightened anxiety among expectant mothers. The importance of the quality of web-based information is currently focused on; however, no studies have evaluated the quality of nutrition-related information for pregnant women.

Objective:

Our study aims to bridge this research gap by assessing the quality of online health information concerning prenatal nutrition tailored to pregnant women.

Methods:

We employed search terms, such as "pregnancy," "pregnant women," "diet," and "nutrition," conducting an exhaustive search on Google. Utilizing the Quality Evaluation Scoring Tool (QUEST), we meticulously evaluated the quality of the retrieved information.

Results:

The top 20 Google-searched sites were evaluated using QUEST, and the average score was 11.7 points, ranging from 6 to 15. Discrepancies in cited guidelines concerning nutritional intake and inappropriate expressions regarding alcohol consumption, weight management, and miscarriage during pregnancy were identified, raising concerns about accuracy and appropriateness.

Conclusions:

Although many websites employ cautious language to mitigate commercial influence, deficiencies persist in crucial areas for empowering informed decision-making among pregnant women. From our assessment of the results, it was found that incorrect evidence information is provided at the top of search results, which is easily accessible to users. The inadequacies in attributing authorship, clarifying conflicts of interest, and ensuring the currency of information pose substantial challenges to the reliability and usefulness of online health resources in prenatal nutrition. Since Internet information is the most accessible , reliable evidence should be provided to protect everyone from misinformation, including shallow health literacy demographics, and from potential physical and psychological harm.