impact of whatsapp-based self-care education on self-care behaviors and lifestyle in overweight and obese pregnant women with diabetes: a randomized controlled trial

Background: self-care education for overweight and obese pregnant women with diabetes can empower them to make informed decisions during pregnancy. objectives: this study aimed to evaluate the effect of whatsapp-delivered self-care education on self-care behaviors and lifestyle in this population. methods: this randomized controlled trial involved eighty pregnant women with diabetes in ahvaz, iran. participants were randomly assigned to two groups: one receiving face-to-face education and the other receiving a combination of face-to-face and whatsapp-delivered online education. blood glucose levels [fasting blood sugar (fbs), 2-hour postprandial (2hpp)], oral glucose tolerance test (ogtt) results, lifestyle scores, and self-care scores were measured before and after the intervention. data were analyzed using spss. results: post-intervention, the intervention group demonstrated significantly lower one-hour (119.32 ± 16.54 vs. 163.55 ± 27.07, p=0.007) and two-hour (106.25 ± 15.65 vs. 147.77 ± 24.73, p = 0.028) postprandial blood glucose levels compared to the control group. furthermore, lifestyle scores improved significantly in the intervention group (154.27 ± 23.24 vs. 42.65 ± 17.58), and self-care scores were markedly higher (141.85 ± 26.64 vs. 56.02 ± 11.63), both showing strong statistical significance (p < 0.001). conclusions: whatsapp-based self-care education is an effective intervention for reducing blood glucose levels and enhancing lifestyle and self-care behaviors in pregnant women with diabetes.