Dieting 'safe for pregnant women'

In the review, researchers at Queen Mary, University of London, looked at the findings from 44 previous studies which involved more than 7,000 women to come to their conclusion.

The researchers compared diet, exercise or a combination of the two. Dietary advice was based on limiting the calorie intake, having a balanced diet and eating foods such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables and pulses.

The researchers then examined how much weight women gained during their pregnancies and if there're complications. While each approach reduced a woman's weight gain, diet had the greatest effect with an average reduction of four kg.

With exercise, the average reduction in weight gain was just 0.7 kg. A combination of diet and exercise led to an average reduction of one kg, the 'BBC' reported.

Women following a calorie-controlled diet were significantly less likely to develop each of the complications considered, but the researchers say those findings need to be repeated in larger studies. (MORE)