Background:
Maternal obesity and excessive gestational weight gain have become one of the most common comorbid conditions of pregnancy. Developments in the related obesity literature have indicated that underlying differences in neural mechanisms related to executive functioning (EF) processes may play a role. These deficits may be further exacerbated in pregnancy, with up to 80% of pregnant women reporting some form of cognitive deficit in memory, attention, and/or EF. Therefore, the aims of this prospective cohort study are 1) to investigate whether pregnancy predicts changes in EF and 2) to explore whether these potential changes are associated with EGWG. Given the subtle nature of these cognitive processes, electroencephalography (EEG) and eye-tracking (ET) techniques will be used for this study.
Methods/design:
We report the design of a prospective cohort study of women planning to become pregnant in the next 1-12 months. Participation involves attendance at a cognitive behavioural task session (Session 1) and a neurocognitive EEG and ET session (Session 2) during the pre-pregnancy stage. Once pregnant, participants will be invited back to repeat testing Session 1 and 2 during the first trimester (typically 4-12 weeks’ gestation) and the third trimester (typically 27-38 weeks’ gestation). In addition, maternal demographic details and maternal weight will be serially measured during pregnancy. Data will be analysed as a prospective cohort study.
Discussion:
With this study, we hope to gain more insight into the relationship between pregnancy-related cognitive changes, and how these may influence the development of EGWG. This prospective longitudinal cohort design with a multi-method approach will lead to more knowledge about how pregnancy is linked to differences in cognitive processing as pregnancy develops, and how this may contribute to healthy weight of expectant women.