Application of Health Theories and Models of Health Education and Promotion in Nutritional Interventions for Pregnant Women in Iran: A Systematic Review

Pregnancy is an important part of a woman's life, and the growth of the fetus and its health depend on the health and well-being of the mother. Therefore, this study aimed to systematically investigate the studies conducted based on models and theories of health education and health promotion in pregnant women's nutritional interventions in Iran. Information & Methods: In order to access Persian articles in Iran and Iranian articles published abroad, related domestic banks (Magiran, SID, IranDoc), foreign (Web of Science, Scopus, Proquest, PubMed, Medlibe) as well as Google Scholar search engine, the search was conducted between 1990 and 2019. The Cochrane checklist was used to evaluate the quality of the articles. To avoid bias in the study, the data were analyzed by two researchers entirely independently. Any disagreement between the researchers was examined by a third party. Finding: Out of 203 articles, finally, eight articles entered the final list. Thus, the final articles were based on the model of Health Belief, Social Cognitive Theory, BASNEF model, and Pender model of health promotion. The Health Belief Model was most used to improve the studied variables. Conclusion: Intervention program based on Models of health education and health promotion has a vital role in promoting the nutritional behaviors of pregnant women. Hence, paying attention to other models and theories of health education and health promotion can be helpful.