Treating Anemia During Pregnancy

Pregnancy is an especially stressful and trauamatic time in a woman’ s life and the reason for this is that her unborn child will place a significant amount of strain and pressure on her body. Because the fetus is unable to feed itself, it will be required to leech its nutrients from the mother, and so it will recieve nourishment from the mother via the placenta.  Therefore, the pregnant woman will need to ensure that they increase their consumption of a number of different minerals and nutrients, such as iron, to offset the risk of developing anemia.

What is anemia?

Anemia is a health disorder whereby the amount of oxygen that is actually transported within the red blood cells of the body is impaired, which in turn, means that the cells of the body which  need oxygen do not get the oxygen they need. This can be potentially fatal, as it impairs the functionality of the heart thereby forcing it to work more harder than before in an attempt to make up the shortfall.

It should be noted that as alluded to earlier within the article, the pregnant woman will need to increase her consumption of iron, because her unborn fetus will take the lion’s share of the mineral directly from her, leaving her with a reduced amount.

How can I prevent anemia during pregnancy?

If a pregnant woman is diagnosed as suffering from anemia, then her physician may prescribe her with iron supplements in order to counter the risks and stop the anemia from escalating.

Are there are side effects or risks associated with these iron supplements?

Like anything else that has been issued from the medical community, iron supplements will have a number of different effects on the body. Constipation is one, although this can be (thankfully) relieved by increasing the amount of fibre in the diet. Stomach cramps and loss of appetite have been reported as potential side effects that can arise from the usage of the iron supplements as well.

Some pregnant females have reported that they notice that their stools seem much darker after taking the iron tablets. This is perfectly normal; therefore, no reason to be alarmed.