Effect of nutrition education by health professionals on pregnancy-specific nutrition knowledge and healthy dietary practice among pregnant women in Asmara, Eritrea: a quasi-experimental study.

Background: Healthy pregnancy and birth outcomes are greatly influenced by the intake of adequate and balanced nutrition. Pregnant women's nutritional knowledge and practice have been identified as an important prerequisites for their proper nutritional intake. The antenatal period with the opportunities for regular contact with health professionals appears to be the ideal time and setting to institute the intervention which could maximise pregnant women's outcome and that of their baby by motivating them to make nutritional changes.