Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
FOOD SCIENCE & NUTRITION, cilt.14, sa.4, ss.1-11, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
The number of studies examining the effects of nutritional literacy and food label reading habits on the healthy lifestyle be-haviors of pregnant women is quite limited. This study aimed to assess the levels of food label reading and nutrition literacy ofpregnant women in Türkiye and to examine their effects on healthy life behaviors. The current study is cross-sectional and wasconducted on a total of 370 pregnant women. All participants were asked to provide descriptive information, nutritional habits,and details about their pregnancies. The Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors in Pregnancy Scale (HLBPS), the Food Label ReadingAttitude Scale (FLRAS), and the Food and Nutrition Literacy Scale (FNLS) were administered to the participants. The studyfound that as FLRAS and FNLS scores increased, HLBPS scores also increased (r = 0.21, p < 0.001; r = 0.15 p < 0.01, respectively).Regression analysis showed that food label reading attitude (B = 0.15, 95% CI: 0.05–0.25, β = 0.15, p < 0.05) and food and nutritionliteracy (B = 0.29, 95% CI: 0.15–0.43, β = 0.21, p < 0.001) were significant predictors of healthy lifestyle behaviors. When bothvariables were entered simultaneously, food and nutrition literacy remained a significant predictor (B = 0.26, 95% CI: 0.12–0.40,β = 0.19, p < 0.001). Moreover, according to HLBPS scores, it was seen that the FLRAS scores of the participants in the first tertilewere lower than the participants in the second and third tertiles (p < 0.05), while the FNLS scores of the participants in the thirdtertile according to HLBPS scores were higher than the participants in the first and second tertiles (p < 0.05). These findingsunderscore the importance of integrating nutrition literacy and label-use strategies into prenatal care services, which may helpimprove healthy lifestyle behaviors among pregnant women, in line with recent recommendations in the literature.