Because of the maternal diet's importance, numerous studies have examined the effects of olive oil on pregnancy outcomes. This study provides a systematic review that evaluates the evidence between olive oil consumption and maternal-fetal outcomes. We hypothesized that olive oil reduced the risk of adverse pregnancy complications. We searched Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde electronic databases (October and November 2021). The keywords used were pregnancy, olive oil, and pregnancy outcomes. This review included all the available studies in English and Portuguese. The exclusion criteria were (1) unrelated to olive oil consumption, (2) other outcomes, and (3) animal studies. The review included 9 articles (6 experimental and 3 observational). In the maternal outcome studies (n = 6), a higher olive oil consumption was associated with a lower prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus, preeclampsia, and cardiovascular risk. In the fetal outcome studies (n = 8), olive oil consumption was associated with a lower risk for small- or large-for-gestational-age infants. Olive oil consumption confers protective effects on pregnancy outcomes; however, further studies are needed that are specifically designed for the impact of olive oil consumption on maternal-fetal outcomes.
This work was supported by the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for financial support through the National Funds FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC) to CIMO ( UIBD/00690/2020 and UIPD/00690/2020 ) and SusTEC ( LA/P/0007/2021 ); and the North Regional Operation Program funded by the European Social Found –NORTE 2020 (M.M. scientific-contract NORTE-06-3559-FSE-000188 ).
