Anemia, questions and answers

[curious]

Anemia during pregnancy is most commonly caused by an iron deficiency. Being tested for anemia early in your pregnancy is a good idea, but may not be enough, since anemia may still develop as your pregnancy progresses.

Although anemia is caused by an iron deficiency in your body, you will not need to worry too much about your baby, since he will be sure to get as much iron from you as he needs. Your baby will only be in danger of suffering from anemia if the situation is completely ignored.

How will I be able to tell if I am anemic?

Anemia should be easily identifiable in the blood tests that you take frequently throughout your pregnancy. The baby will start drawing on your iron reserves much more heavily around week 20, so you may develop anemia later in your pregnancy.

Common symptoms of anemia during pregnancy include:

* Feeling exhausted or weak
* Pale or light skin
* Fainting spells
* Palpitations
* Breathlessness

Who is most at risk?

Pregnant women who have poor nutrition, due to nausea and vomiting or simply bad habits, are more at risk of developing anemia. Also, women who are carrying multiple fetuses may be at a higher risk, as two babies will deplete iron stores twice as much. Women who have two or more pregnancies relatively close together may be at risk for similar reasons.

How much iron should I be getting?

The recommended daily allowance of iron is around 15mg for women trying to conceive. Pregnant women will need to consume about twice that much each day. Your healthcare provider may advise you to start taking an iron supplement, although these are known to cause constipation, nausea, and vomiting. It may be wise to simply try and include many iron rich foods such as spinach, dried fruits, or liver in your diet.

Keep in mind that your choice of beverages and other foods will affect your rate of iron absorption. Consuming foods rich in vitamin C along with the iron rich foods will facilitate absorption, while consuming caffeine will hinder it.

[Amy]

THis can be a really serious condition and often overlooked. THanks for the great information and tips. I drank a lot of milk and water during my pregancy and totally cut out the 2 plus liters of coke that I drank a day. (Might explain the weight loss I had during my pregnancy!)

[Tigriz]

This is a major reason why most ob's will now prescribe prenatal vitamins for women to take throughout their pregnancy. Believe it not, during the first part of my pregnancy when I couldn't keep anything down, the doc suggested I take Flintstones vitamins, 3 a day. I did, and though I've had problems with anemia throughout my life, I never once had a problem with it during my pregnancy!

[feline]

That was my problem before, I didn't like to take in any vitamin when I was pregnant and so, what happened was that though I didn't have anemia, I had bell's palsy a week before I gave birth to my baby. It is really very important to be able to take in vitamins when you are pregnant because there are already two of you (you and your baby) who are going to need these supplements for your bodies.

[Amy]

I totally forgot about the prenatal vitamins, but I did take those as well and I'm sure they made a difference to the health of our son (a preemie).

[Melos]

I actually remember arguing with my doctor because I did NOT want to take the prenatal vitamins that he prescribed. Upon looking at the ingredients of the prenatals, I found that the vitamins I was already taking were more complete and properly balanced.

It is very important to take vitamins, I think, unless your diet is exemplary.

[hsmdel]

Malnutrition or anemia caused by intestinal worms can make pregnancy difficult and, simultaneously, be worsened by pregnancy. Lack of folic acid and other micronutrients, which may result from intestinal worms or chronic malaria, has also been linked to premature placental separation. This is so severe that it even affect the unborn child who may develop complications just after birth. It brings down the level of immunity in the child which makes the baby susceptible to infections.

[hsmdel]

A woman who was suffering from anemia during pregnancy, normal amount of bleeding during labor and delivery can become very critical. They are more prone to develop infections after delivery. Also, if folic acid is deficient, the risk of having a baby with a birth defect of the brain or spinal cord, such as spina bifida, is increased.