Corning

Researchers are studying whether providing healthy food during pregnancy can reduce the number of women who gain too much weight compared to enhanced standard care. This large multi-site randomized trial will include 1,440 pregnant women aged 16 to 44 years, aiming to better understand gestational weight gain and related pregnancy complications like gestational hypertension and diabetes. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. The Enhanced Standard of Care (ESoC) group will receive usual nutrition and weight gain counseling, help enrolling in food assistance programs like WIC and SNAP, and referrals to emergency food resources. The Delivering HOPE group will receive all ESoC services plus financial support during pregnancy ($1,000 to $3,000 depending on household size) specifically for purchasing healthy foods recommended in counseling. Throughout the study, data on weight before pregnancy and at delivery will be collected from birth records to measure excessive gestational weight gain. Women will be monitored from early pregnancy (up to 18 weeks) through postpartum (about 40 weeks). The study will also track outcomes related to healthy diet, gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes, and pregnancy complications to assess the impact of the interventions.