The intervention is aim to encourage the participant to have better nutrition intake and engage in low to moderate-intensity exercise on 3 to 5 days per week, for 8 weeks in order to improve their psychosocial well-being. After being informed about the study and potential risks, the participants will be screened according to their eligibility criteria. The participants who are eligible to participate in the study will be contacted again and asked for consent to join the study. After obtaining the consent, the participant will undergo a baseline assessment, and subsequently, the investigator will assign the participant to their respective groups, the intervention and control groups. All of the health assessments will be conducted at baseline, 4th week and 8th week.~In intervention group, the participant will be provided an educational module entitled Mommies can Eat and Exercise with No Stress (MomEENS), in which the module will be delivered through a booklet and video. The MomEENS module incorporated achievement-based objectives for five key recommendations: 1. Eat healthy foods ;2. Eat foods rich in iron and folic acid; 3. Eat foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids; 4. Increase steps in a day and; 5. Increase body flexibility and strength. All the key recommendations will be explained in the booklet, while the video will provide full guidance on how to exercise during postpartum at home, explaining key recommendations 4 and 5.~Face-to-face consultation with the participants will be held at baseline and 4th week to enhance the participation and motivation of the participants towards the intervention. Besides, Whatsapp and Facebook page group is developed as a step to enhance the compliance of participants towards intervention. The group will be created soon after the participants undergo the baseline phase. Whatsapp group provides a medium for participant to ask, share, and communicate with other participants (only within the intervention group) regarding the intervention activities they commit. On the other hand, Facebook page group will provide a forum to support and additional related information. In addition to the continuity of the compliance, telephone follow-up calls will be at least administered once for every two weeks, lasting for about 5 to 10 minutes for each call. It is aimed to monitor the participant's progress while engaging in appropriating self-management behaviours.~The participants in the control group will be received advice on the standardised Malaysian food pyramid and be instructed to follow their usual standard care as suggested by their healthcare provider. Postpartum women in Malaysia typically attend postpartum healthcare visits with an exam on day 30 after childbirth but receive no other routine care following this appointment unless a specific health problem has been identified. Participants in the control group performed the same evaluations. They received the same incentives as those in the intervention group, but they did not receive any educational module and contact from the investigator during the 8 weeks follow-up.
This study aims to examine the effectiveness of nutrition and physical intervention to improve psychosocial well-being of postpartum mothers with preterm infants. The focus was highlighted towards the mothers of preterm infants who were cared in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) as these parents might have a higher stress level than the full-term infants. The intervention consisted of a module designed for postpartum mothers, incorporating nutrition and physical activity entitled Mommies can Eat & Exercise with No Stress (MomEENS).