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PRE-PREGNANCY DEWORMING AND FOLIC ACID SUPPLEMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED BIRTHWEIGHT

Monday, 21st of May 2012

‘[P]roviding women with deworming and weekly iron-folic acid supplements before pregnancy is associated with increased birth weight in rural Vietnam.’

• INCREASED BIRTHWEIGHT

Increased Birth Weight Associated with Regular Pre-Pregnancy Deworming and Weekly Iron-Folic Acid Supplementation for Vietnamese Women

Full text is at http://www.plosntds.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pntd.0001608

Author Summary

Low birth weight is an important risk factor for neonatal and infant morbidity and mortality and may impact on growth and development. Maternal iron deficiency anaemia contributes to intrauterine growth restriction and low birth weight. Hookworm infections and an iron-depleted diet may lead to iron deficiency anaemia, and both are common in many developing countries. A pilot program of deworming and weekly iron-folic acid supplementation for non-pregnant women aiming to prevent iron deficiency was implemented in northern Vietnam. We compared the birth weight of babies born to women who had had access to the intervention to babies born in districts where the intervention had not been implemented. The mean birth weight of the intervention districts' babies was 124 g more than the control districts' babies; the prevalence of low birth weight was also reduced. These results suggest that providing women with deworming and weekly iron-folic acid supplements before pregnancy is associated with increased birth weight in rural Vietnam. This intervention was provided as a health system integrated program which could be replicated in other at-risk rural areas. If so it could increase the impact of prenatal and antenatal programs, improving the health of both women and newborns.