Anemia in Pregnancy: Prevention and Treatment

Pregnancy Stress

When late pregnancy comes, the baby’s movement in your stomach and the amount of amniotic fluid also increases, so a pregnant woman’s body shape stretches even more. As your stomach and your baby get bigger, he/she needs a lot of nutrition.

Although the second trimester of pregnancy is also a period when the mother is likely to start becoming anemic, this article will explain anemia that is likely to occur in late pregnancy.

Why is anemia common during pregnancy?

Anemia is a state in which hemoglobin in the blood, which has the role of carrying oxygen to the cells of the body, is decreasing. Anemia is diagnosed when the hemoglobin concentration in the blood becomes less than 11.0g/dl.

It is easy to become anemic during pregnancy because it requires a lot of blood to grow the baby and the placenta. During pregnancy, the blood volume in the body increases to about 1.4 times before pregnancy. However, when the increase of red blood cells cannot catch up with the increase of water (plasma component) and the blood becomes thin, it becomes the main cause of “iron deficiency anemia” during pregnancy.

What helps with anemia during pregnancy?

Because the body becomes hypoxic when it becomes anemic, it easily becomes very tiring. In addition, you may feel palpitations, shortness of breath, dizziness, etc.

There is no effect on the baby unless it is very bad anemia, but there are various influences on the mother. It is best to treat before birth because the amount of bleeding at birth increases or the recovery of maternity after childbirth is delayed.

What is an effective diet for the prevention of anemia?

The main improvement method is diet therapy. Meals effective for anemia are as follows.

Pig and chicken liver

The liver is a food ingredient containing a lot of iron. However, at the beginning of pregnancy, do not take too much Vitamin A contained in the liver, so keep it in an appropriate amount. To know why to click here.

Shellfishes such as clam

In addition to iron, shellfish contains many proteins necessary for synthesizing red blood cells.

Spinach

Spinach is a vegetable rich in iron. After boiling spinach, it should be exposed to running water.

Vinegar + iron content

Iron compatibility with rice vinegar, apple vinegar, etc. is good, and if ingested together iron will become more soluble in the stomach. It is recommended to add items with vinegar to the menu.

Vitamin C + iron content

Vitamin C also functions to help iron absorption in the body. It is rich in potatoes, fruits, vegetables, etc., so it is best to take with every meal.

Animal protein + iron content

Since the main raw material of hemoglobin is iron and protein, digestion and absorption will increase when the iron is taken together with fish animal protein such as beef and tuna.

What kind of treatment is done at the hospital?

If improvement is not seen even after continuing diet therapy, iron medicine is prescribed at the hospital. Some women take iron medication because they are anemic all the time from mid-gestation to just before birth. Do not drink iron medication with tea. If you drink iron with tea, it will be absorbed by tannin contained in tea, so be sure to take iron with water.

Also, when you start drinking iron with tea, the stool turns black, but this is because iron that is not absorbed is discharged with the feces. There may be some iron supplements that do not suit your body and you may get an upset stomach or constipation from taking them, so consult your doctor as soon as possible if you sense some strange body reactions.

If your body condition is not improved by taking iron medication and develops into severe anemia, you may be injected with iron medicine.

Summary

Anemia during pregnancy may develop progressively without subjective symptoms because it happens gradually. It is important to know the condition of your body properly by receiving pregnancy medical examinations. And if you are diagnosed with anemia, do not panic. Improve your condition by eating the correct meals and continue taking the medicine properly when prescribed.

Be healthy. Help prepare your body to give birth to a healthy baby.

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