Iron deficiency is one of the most common nutritional risk factors during pregnancy and childbirth as well as postpartum and lactation. Untold numbers of women have low-filled or largely depleted iron stores at the beginning of pregnancy. As a result, miscarriages and premature births can occur as a consequence of the mother’s anemia. The iron requirement is particularly high during pregnancy because of the increasing blood volume of the mother and the necessary iron storage in the fetal tissues.
A micronutrient for iron health
Iron is a vital trace element for the human organism that must be absorbed daily with food. In the gastrointestinal tract, the micronutrient is absorbed and from there it is passed on into the bloodstream. Day after day, small amounts of iron are lost through the intestines, skin and kidneys. If these losses are not replaced, iron deficiency can develop over time. Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin in the red blood cells, the erythrocytes. These are tireless oxygen transporters, supplying the entire organism with its 60-100 trillion cells with the elixir of life. Iron is also a component of the red muscle pigment (myoglobin) and numerous enzymes that are directly involved in the provision of energy. Three to five grams of iron are stored in the body. These stores include the proteins hemosiderin and ferritin. They are present in the liver, bone marrow, spleen and muscles.
How does iron deficiency manifest?
The symptoms of iron deficiency are mainly: fatigue, decreased performance, poor concentration, headaches, brittle fingernails and dry pale skin, cracked corners of the mouth, tingling in the hands and feet, hair loss, shortness of breath, palpitations and susceptibility to infectious diseases. If the iron supply is insufficient, the iron stores empty slowly. Symptoms usually appear only when the formation of new red blood cells is impeded. Iron deficiency in an insidious form is caused by blood loss, for example in injuries, bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract and, especially in women, by menstruation. Disruption of iron absorption takes place in gastrointestinal diseases, for example, when too little gastric acid is formed and the diet does not contain enough iron.
Women – risk group no. 1
Due to monthly bleeding, women aged 12-50 years are more at risk from iron deficiency than men; their requirements are 50% higher. While men need 10 milligrams of iron daily, women need at least 15 milligrams. The fact is that almost 50% of women of childbearing age are not optimally supplied with iron. Many have no iron reserves of their own, so that the risk of iron deficiency anemia doubles in the event of pregnancy. The growing uterus with the placenta and the fetus must be supplied with oxygen. Therefore, the iron requirement in the last third of pregnancy is twice as high as normal, at 30 milligrams per day. The newborn baby receives a supply of iron at birth that is sufficient for about 4 months. In addition, the baby is supplied with iron through the mother’s milk, but only 50% of this can be used by the infant. The iron requirement of a nursing mother is about 20 milligrams per day.
