# Identifying optimal dietary patterns for postpartum cardiovascular disease prevention

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2024 · $708,794

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Cardiovascular disease has declined dramatically in all US adults except young women, whose rates remain
stagnant. Young women who are Black or low-income carry the highest burden. Professional groups agree that
the period around pregnancy is an ideal target for primordial and primary prevention efforts. Diet is a
cornerstone in cardiovascular disease prevention, but this research is based on older adults, and is unlikely to
generalize to the childbearing years, when changes to lifestyle and physiology alter diet and nutrient needs,
and social determinants of health pose additional barriers. There are major gaps in our understanding of the
dietary patterns that optimize short- and long-term postpartum cardiovascular health. Further, we do not know
whether postpartum dietary patterns can mitigate the excess risk related to having a prior adverse pregnancy
outcome, and more broadly, the groups that most benefit from dietary modification.
We will fill these knowledge gaps by establishing the role of longitudinal dietary patterns in the development of
cardiovascular disease and risk factors from periconception to 10 years postpartum. We propose a cost-
efficient secondary analysis of existing data from 4048 racially- and socioeconomically-diverse participants in
the nuMoM2b-Heart Health Study who had in-person study visits at 6‒13 weeks’ gestation as well as 3 and 10
years postpartum. First, we will estimate the effect of longitudinal dietary patterns on 3- and 10-year
postpartum risk of incident hypertension, incident metabolic syndrome, and their risk factors, and explore how
social determinants of health interact with dietary patterns to influence these risks. Then, we will estimate the
extent to which postpartum dietary patterns can reduce the excess 3- and 10-year postpartum cardiovascular
risks among individuals with an adverse pregnancy outcome (gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes,
and preterm birth). Finally, we will identify optimal dietary patterns for groups of childbearing individuals based
on factors such as race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, community deprivation, adverse pregnancy outcomes,
preexisting conditions, BMI, early-pregnancy and postpartum cardiometabolic markers, and postpartum weight.
This work will deliver timely, high-quality evidence to providers and policymakers on the ideal dietary patterns
for primordial and primary prevention of postpartum cardiovascular disease for vulnerable populations. Our
work will improve medical practice and public health by identifying a specific, clinically actionable set of dietary
guidelines that will target limited resources in critical time periods to individuals who will have the greatest
benefit. Our innovative and significant project will inform strategies to alter dietary patterns for improving future
cardiovascular morbidity and mortality and reduce its long-standing disparities.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10939396
- **Project number:** 1R01HL174652-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Lisa M Bodnar
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $708,794
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-08-15 → 2028-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10939396

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10939396, Identifying optimal dietary patterns for postpartum cardiovascular disease prevention (1R01HL174652-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-12 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10939396. Licensed CC0.

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