A cross-sectional survey investigating women's information sources, behaviour, expectations, knowledge and level of satisfaction on advice received about diet and supplements before and during pregnancy

Background The reported long-term effects of poor maternal nutrition and uptake of recommended supplements before and during pregnancy was the impetus behind this study. Our objectives were to investigate and understand women’s expectations, knowledge, behaviour and information sources used regarding the use of nutrition and vitamin supplements before and during pregnancy. Methods A cross-sectional survey using a self-administered questionnaire was undertaken. A purposive sampling technique was used. Women attending the antenatal clinic at Croydon University Hospital during 2015 were invited to take part in the study. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics, paired sample T-tests and Chi-squared tests, with the level of significance set at 5% (p < 0.05). Results A total of 133 pregnant women completed the survey. Analysis of the results showed that women are currently using electronic resources (33%, n = 42) rather than healthcare professionals (19%, n = 25) as an information source before pregnancy. Women who sourced information through the internet were significantly more likely to take folic acid (p = 0.006) and vitamin D (p = 0.004) before pregnancy. Women preferred to receive information from the antenatal clinic (62%, n = 83), internet (46%, n = 61) and from mobile applications (27%, n = 36). Although women believed they had sufficient knowledge (60%, n = 80) and had received adequate advice (53%, n = 70) concerning the correct supplements to take, this was not demonstrated in their behaviour, with only a small number of women (37%, n = 49) taking a folic acid supplement before pregnancy. Women mistakenly perceived the timing of supplement advice as correct, with only a small number of women (18%, n = 23) considering the advice on supplements as too late. Conclusions Despite the small sample size, this study demonstrated that women did not receive timely and/or accurate advice to enable them to take the recommended supplements at the optimal time. Women had the misconception that they understood the correct use of pregnancy supplements. This misunderstanding may be prevented by providing women intending to become pregnant with a structured, approved electronic source of information that improves their supplements uptake

How do parents manage irritability, challenging behavior, non-compliance and anxiety in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders? A meta-synthesis

Although there is increasing research interest in the parenting of children with ASD, at present, little is known about everyday strategies used to manage problem behaviour. We conducted a meta-synthesis to explore what strategies parents use to manage irritability, non-compliance, challenging behaviour and anxiety in their children with ASD. Approaches included: (1) accommodating the child; (2) modifying the environment; (3) providing structure, routine and occupation; (4) supervision and monitoring; (5) managing non-compliance with everyday tasks; (6) responding to problem behaviour; (7) managing distress; (8) maintaining safety and (9) analysing and planning. Results suggest complex parenting demands in children with ASD and problem behaviour. Findings will inform the development of a new measure to quantify parenting strategies relevant to ASD

Stable Polycomb-dependent transgenerational inheritance of chromatin states in Drosophila

International audienceTransgenerational epigenetic inheritance (TEI) describes the transmission of alternative functional states through multiple generations in the presence of the same genomic DNA sequence. Very little is known about the principles and the molecular mechanisms governing this type of inheritance. Here, by transiently enhancing 3D chromatin interactions, we established stable and isogenic Drosophila epilines that carry alternative epialleles, as defined by differential levels of Polycomb-dependent trimethylation of histone H3 Lys27 (forming H3K27me3). After being established, epialleles can be dominantly transmitted to naive flies and can induce paramutation. Importantly, epilines can be reset to a naive state by disruption of chromatin interactions. Finally, we found that environmental changes modulate the expressivity of the epialleles, and we extended our paradigm to naturally occurring phenotypes. Our work sheds light on how nuclear organization and Polycomb group (PcG) proteins contribute to epigenetically inheritable phenotypic variability