Abstract
This review aimed to assess the effects of an infectious disease pandemic on dietary behaviors and physical
activity of pregnant women and to identify any differences in this impact that were caused by the characteristics of pregnant women. A search was performed through six databases (Ichushi-Web, CiNii, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, and SocINDEX) using keywords such as “infectious disease,” “pregnancy, ” and “lifestyle ” to identify relevant articles published in Japanese and English until April 2024. The authors screened the identified articles based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria and selected thirteen articles for this review. Ten articles that examined the association between an infectious disease pandemic and dietary behaviors showed that some pregnant women improved their diets due to increased home cooking, whereas the diets of others deteriorated as a result of changes in childcare and economic circumstances. In seven out of ten relevant articles that examined the association between an infectious disease pandemic and physical activity, the physical activity level of pregnant women decreased during an infectious disease pandemic. These changes have been reported to be influenced by social contexts such as parity and country of residence. Healthcare professionals need to understand the variations in the changes caused by these factors and provide health guidance on diet and physical activity during an infectious disease pandemic while considering the individual circumstances of each pregnant woman.
