The life course perspective in relation to nutrition during preconception and pregnancy is a relatively new and unexplored research territory. Until now, studies have mainly focused on topics such as maternal weight[5,6] and specific nutrient intake [7,8], rather than on healthy eating [2]. Also, relatively little is known about the motivations women have for their nutrition behaviour during preconception and pregnancy. For the effective development of programmes to promote healthy nutrition however, these motivations are of great importance.