What is Postpartum Anemia?
Post delivery some women may face health issues due to a lot of hormonal changes during pregnancy. Iron deficiency in a woman post delivery is termed as Postpartum anemia.
When the hemoglobin level goes down, that is, less than 110 g/L in one week postpartum and less than 120 g/L in an eight weeks postpartum period. It is defined as Postpartum anemia.
Causes of Postpartum Anemia
During pregnancy a mother’s body has an increased demand of iron, which can sometimes lead to iron-deficiency. Post- delivery as well iron requirement is needed in the body.
Post- delivery mother’s body needs iron for recovery of body. Some mothers may face a low level of iron. Body requires iron to produce hemoglobin, which is necessary to make RBCs (Red Blood Cells) that transfer oxygen to the entire body.
Postnatal anemia causes due to:
heavy blood flow
multiple births
lack of nutritional food
inability to absorb iron
Find here: Home Remedies For Colic In Babies
Signs & Symptoms of Postnatal Anemia
Dizziness
Tired and exhausted
Weakness
Breathing issues
Rapid heartbeat
Anxiety
Headaches
Itchy skin
Low immunity
Change in taste bud
Sore tongue
Less production of breastmilk
Cold hands and feet
Brittle nails
Excessive hair fall
What to do in Postpartum Anemia?
If you feel any of the above mentioned symptoms you should definitely consult your doctor. If your doctor diagnoses confirmed iron deficiency then he must prescribe you Iron supplements. Along with the supplements you need to increase your diet with nutritional food and change your lifestyle. Here are some tips to follow:
Eat iron rich foods
Must include iron rich foods in your diet in order to meet the iron requirements of the body. Some of the iron rich foods include spinach, drumsticks, lentils, tofu, beans, peas, red meat, chicken etc.
If you are non vegetarian then you can eat red meat as meat absorbs more iron than it does from any other food. If you choose to eat veggies, you need to increase the intake of iron rich plant based foods.
Other than veggies and meat you can also eat iron fortified cereals like brown rice, pasta, breads.
Eat Vitamin C foods
Vitamin C rich foods help in enhancing the iron absorption in the body. Citrus fruit juices like oranges, sweet lime, kiwi, strawberries helps your body to better absorb dietary iron.
Reduce tea intake
If you are a tea-coffee lover then you need to change your habit as tea contains tannins which reduce the iron absorption in the body. Green tea is also not recommended to anaemic and breastfeeding mothers.
Drink lots of water
Staying hydrated is the key mantra for a healthy body, water helps in blood flow and prevents urinary infection after childbirth. You may feel bloating or constipated due to iron supplement intake therefore adequate water is necessary to tackle all these issues.
Maintain hygiene
Keep yourself away from infection as iron deficiency brings down the low immunity. Considering todays’ situation you definitely need to maintain hygiene, if you feel any sign of flu or infection immediately consult your doctor.
Medicines
Prescribed iron supplements are necessary to take to improve the iron levels in the blood. Do not forget or skip the medicines, you can set reminders to take your tablets on time.
Breastfeeding and Postpartum Anemia
Iron deficiency definitely decreases the quality and quantity of milk supply in mothers, which may cause low weight in babies. This may also lead to weaning at an early stage, in such case infants should be provided with iron- fortified formula milk. Do not give cow milk until the age of one, cow’s milk is not a good source of iron. After six month of age, you can give your baby iron rich solid foods in the form of puree.
Post-delivery body takes time to recover, meanwhile if you feel any unusual symptoms definitely consult your doctor. Postpartum anemia is curable with medicines, nutritional food and the right way of treatment.
Also read: 5 Ways to Increase Breast Milk Supply
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