Neonatal Iron Status and Body Composition as Influenced by Mother's Anaemia

Abstract

Iron is a micronutrient which is crucial for growth of fetus during pregnancy, and maternal iron is the major source of fetal iron. As the demand of iron increases during pregnancy, it becomes difficult to ensure sufficient maternal iron stores. Literature suggests that maternal iron deficiency anaemia might influence the iron reserves of newborns and also affect growth and development of fetus and newborns after birth. The aim of this chapter is to examine the association between maternal anaemia and newborn anthropometric parameters, namely haemoglobin and iron reserves after birth. This 18-month research was a cross-sectional analysis of data from a large hospital. Blood samples were taken from both the mother and the newborn to analyse haemoglobin and serum ferritin levels during the initial stage of labour. The mean age of enrolled pregnant women was 25.81 ± 4.67 years and most of them belonged to 21-30 years of age (72.32%).