Anemia is an extremely common pregnancy complication
and if you are suffering from anemia it is important that it is diagnosed early on during your pregnancy.
During pregnancy there is a fine line between production
of blood cells which carry oxygen to your baby and the rest
of your body and the destruction of these cells. Anemia
is a condition in which the number of red blood cells are low,
meaning that the cells which carry oxygen to your baby and
yourself is low.
During your pregnancy the number of these red blood cells
should increase, as well as the plasma, which is the liquid
part of your blood. Your doctor may keep track of this with
the aid of regular blood tests, using a hematocrit reading,
which measures the ratio of blood to blood cells. If you are
anemic, then your hematocrit will be lower than 37.
There are three main types of Anemia
Iron Deficiency Anemia This is the most common type of anemia in pregnancy. During your pregnancy your baby will use some of your iron
stores you have in your body and if you have iron deficiency
anemia, then your body will not have enough iron store to
produce blood cells.
Most prenatal vitamins contain iron to help replenish the
lost iron stores. It is vital that you take a supplement
that contains iron daily as it is poorly absorbed through
the gastrointestinal tract. Unfortunately there may be side
effects to taking iron supplements, most common is constipation but can also cause vomiting and
nausea and an upset stomach.
Sickle-Cell Anemia In sickle-cell anemia your body basically produces red
blood cells which are abnormal and this causes the red
blood cells to block the blood vessel. This could in
turn be passed on to your baby.
Women who have sickle-cell anemia pyelonephritis and bacteria
in her urine during her pregnancy. Sickle-cell anemia is
easily picked up by means of a blood test and there are
various ways to treat it.
Thalassemia This is another form of anemia which is encountered less
frequently and is found more often in Mediterranean populations.
It is basically the underproduction of a protein that makes
up red blood cells. If you have a family history of this
particular disorder consult your doctor.
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Anemia is an extremely common pregnancy complication
and if you are suffering from anemia it is important that it is diagnosed early on during your pregnancy.
Iron Deficiency Anemia
