Pregnant women who are in their 36 week gestation period in the Savelugu Municipality and Nanton District are anemic.
According to the municipality’s annual report 66.6% of pregnant women are anemic.
This, health officials say was alarming and could contribute significantly to a high maternal mortality rate in the northern region if measures are not put in place.
These women, the health officials say have only about two weeks to deliver and inadequate blood is a recipe for disaster.
The Savelugu Municipal Health Director, Danisia Agong disclosed this to Zaa News at the dissemination workshop for Radio Drama project to promote child nutrition, agriculture and child health issues.
It was organized by the Center for Science and Health Communication in partnership with Texas Agriculture and Mechanization University School of Public Health and the University for Development Studies (UDS), Ghana Health Service and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
The Savelugu Municipal Health Director attributed the high anemic rate among pregnant women to their refusal to take iron tablets to help them build higher hemoglobin. She was particularly worried that these women who are mostly from the rural communities deliver their babies at home instead in hospitals.
The municipality already recorded four maternity deaths and two of the dead lost their lives through bleeding after delivery (January to March ).
On what accounts for the alarming rate of anemia among pregnant women, Madam Danisia said even though her outfit was yet to carry out research in the communities, the possible causes are wrong perception about iron tablets.
Most of the pregnant women believe Iron tablets increase the size of their babies which cause them pain during delivery and sometimes caesarean section (CS).
Another reason Madam Danisia suspected was the pregnant women not eating green leafy vegetables. “We have carried out sensitization to dispel this notion but the problem still persists,” the health director said.
She also observed that most of the pregnant women like dry okro which add nothing in terms of protein or boosting their hemoglobin levels.
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