Sunday Observer Online
http://www.liyathabara.com/    

Home

Sunday, 21 April 2013

Untitled-1

observer
 ONLINE


OTHER PUBLICATIONS


OTHER LINKS

Marriage Proposals
Classified
Government Gazette

Nutritional care during pregnancy, a challenging task

A healthy baby and a secure pregnancy is the sole dream of each and every expecting parent. Sri Lanka being an eastern country has a higher concern towards motherhood and care during pregnancy. It is a well known fact that adequate nutrition during pregnancy plays a major role in a child's and mother's health.

Hence, special care should be taken regarding a mother's food intake as naturally the demand for quantity and quality of food increases with the development of the baby inside the uterus. However, during pregnancy, the body goes through a series of changes and fulfillment of the special nutrient requirements would be challenging at some points.

To cope up with these nutritional challenges and to assure the well-being of both mother and the baby, it is important to have a better understanding on the nutritional complications and possible remedies.

The common nutritional problems among Sri Lankan pregnant women are mainly the iron deficiency, folic acid deficiency, vitamin B12 deficiency and inadequate weight gain during pregnancy, and for a minor extent the excessive weight gained during pregnancy. Among the above-mentioned, the most prevalent in Sri Lanka is the iron deficiency anemia. This is characterised by quick fatigue, paleness of skin and lethargy in day to day activities. During pregnancy the iron requirement is almost doubled and adequate intake is essential for producing new blood cells that carry enough oxygen to the baby. Blood volume of mother should be increased to avoid delivery complications due to severe blood loss.

The preferred practice to avoid iron deficiency, is to have a diet rich in iron by eating fish, meat, range of green leafy vegetables, cereals and pulses. The iron from animal sources such as meat and fish is more efficiently absorbed compared to plant sources. Further, iron is much easier to absorb if body has enough vitamin C and it is always better to drink a glass of fruit juice or have a piece of fruit after meals every day. However in Sri Lanka, free distribution of iron tablets is done at pregnancy clinics.

The best time to take the tablets is around one to two hours after dinner, before going to sleep. Since the demand of iron is high during pregnancy and typical Sri Lankan diets do not contain much animal sources, it is better for all Sri Lankan pregnant women to be in the safe side by taking supplementary iron tablets.

The next common nutritional issue in pregnancy is the folic acid and B12 deficiency. Folic acid is vital for the baby's nerve tissue development which takes place during the first two weeks after conceiving. Since many of the pregnancies among Sri Lankans are not pre planned and pregnancy identifications are done normally after one month, adequate intake of foliate prior to pregnancy is important.

This can be effectively achieved through an intake of balanced diet containing more green leafy vegetables. Hence, promotion of a balanced diet among females from the stage of adolescents is important to assure safe and healthy pregnancies in adult life. Added to this, it is equally important to plan your pregnancies and be physically ready once you decide to be an expecting mother.

Vitamin B12 is important to maintain the functions of folic acid and adequate amounts are only found in animal sources. Therefore, B12 deficiency is common among Sri Lankan mothers who are vegetarians and who have low accessibility to animal foods due to economical issues. Vegan mothers are advised to go for B12 pills under prescription by the physician.

It is a common fact that pregnant women often experience nausea and vomiting. Further, they have strong dislikes and cravings for certain food items. However, if the combined effect of all these factors, contribute for the reduction of mothers' food intake, it will give rise to number of complications in mother as well as in developing baby.

The low energy levels of mother result in growth retardation of the baby and it often leads to inadequate weight gain of mother during pregnancy. The required weight gain varies with the mother's pre-pregnancy weight and it is important to know whether a pregnant woman is having a healthy weight gain adequate for different stages of pregnancy. So, care should be taken in order to attend antenatal clinics and be assured that you have healthy weight gain.

Nausea and vomiting can be managed by making simple dietary adjustments. Eating small meals throughout the day instead of three large meals, staying away from fried and fatty foods and avoiding foods with bothersome smells can be done.

Intake of more carbohydrates and starchy foods such as rice, and other flour products reassure the adequate carbohydrate intake where as porridges like kola kenda, liquids such as king coconut water and fruit juices are important to compensate the fluid losses, due to excessive vomiting. If the condition is uncontrolled it is better to consult the physician.

Problems in digestion and associated heartburns (burning sensation in chest area) can be a regular irritation for many pregnant women and it is a common complaint reported in most of the pregnancy clinics. If the discomfort is quite severe, it is better to take advice from public health midwives. Frequent constipation is another type of discomfort experienced by most of the expecting mothers. Frequent intake of liquids, semi solid foods, fruits and veggies with proper hygiene is quite important to avoid these kinds of problems. Further, if the mothers are having difficulties in eating large meals at the three main meal times, it is always good to have frequent healthy snacks such as fruits and boiled vegetables, nuts and seeds etc in between major meals.

The overriding point that should be pinpointed is that a mother's nutritional intake during pregnancy directly affects the health and development of the unborn baby and will continue to affect both mother and baby for many months, years and even throughout their lives. As lack of nutritional care can result in low birth weight or slower development of baby and complications in mother, assurance of proper nutrition during pregnancy is mandatory. After all, "we are not only what we eat, but also what our mothers have eaten while we were in her tummy".

The writer is a third year undergraduate at the Department of Applied Nutrition, Wayamba University of Sri Lanka

 

EMAIL |   PRINTABLE VIEW | FEEDBACK

www.army.lk
www.news.lk
www.defence.lk
Donate Now | defence.lk
www.apiwenuwenapi.co.uk
LANKAPUVATH - National News Agency of Sri Lanka
Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL)
 

| News | Editorial | Finance | Features | Political | Security | Sports | Spectrum | Montage | Impact | World | Obituaries | Junior | Youth |

 
 

Produced by Lake House Copyright © 2013 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.

Comments and suggestions to : Web Editor