The body requires iron to make hemoglobin. This is the oxygen carrying red pigment in blood. If there isn't enough iron in the body, the production of hemoglobin becomes limited. This in turn affects the production of red blood cells (RBC). A decreased amount of hemoglobin and RBCs in the bloodstream resulting in less oxygen available to cells and tissues is known as anemia. Without the right amount of oxygen, these cells and tissues does not function well.
Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is primarily caused by insufficient iron intake. This is the major factor of childhood anemia. It has become much less common in the United States over the past 30 years, primarily due to iron-fortified infant formulas and cereals but is a concern in third world and developing countries.
Iron-deficiency anemia doesn't develop immediately. Instead, a person progresses through stages of iron deficiency, beginning with iron depletion, in which the amount of iron in the body is reduced while the iron in RBCs remains constant. If iron depletion isn't corrected, it progresses to iron deficiency, eventually leading to IDA.
Mom's stress during pregnancy can affect baby's iron status
Newborns whose mothers are under stress during the first trimester of pregnancy may be at risk for low iron status, which could lead to physical and mental delays down the road, according to a study to be presented Sunday, April 29, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Boston.
Iron plays an important role in the development of organ systems, especially the brain. Well-known risk factors for poor iron status in infants are maternal iron deficiency, maternal diabetes, smoking during pregnancy, preterm birth, low birthweight and multiple pregnancy.
This study, conducted by researchers from Ashkelon Academic College and Barzilai Medical Center in Israel and the University of Michigan, is the first in humans to suggest that maternal stress early in pregnancy is another risk factor for low iron status in newborns.
