[Social aspects of energy and protein consumption in a group of pregnant women].
This paper presents the results of a dietary survey (weighed intake/24 hr) carried out in 64 pregnant women living in Huamantla, Tlaxcala, Mexico and its proximities, during November 1973. The primary objective of the study was to identify social indicators with predictive value in relation to food consumption patterns, in order to detect groups at risk of having an inadequate intake. A subgroup of the women (15 cases) had adequate levels of energy and protein intake (E/P intake) when compared to the recommendations established by FAO/OMS, 1973, although they consumed a diet with relatively few variations which was also low in fat content. Family organization was the socioanthropological variable which had the greatest relationship with E/P intake. The extended families presented a better E/P ratio than the nuclear families. Interestingly, the per capita expenditure did not show a significant association with nutritional indicators. These data suggest, therefore, that in the population studied the E/P ratio is more closely associated with family organization than with its income level.