Why Pregnant Women Should Consume Vitamins, Here’s the Word of the Experts of IPB
Pregnant women who were malnourished were the main causes of the death of the pregnant women and the babies who were born. Anemia often occurred in the pregnant women, the main causes were the lack of nutrients that played a role in the formation of hemoglobin, namely protein, iron, vitamin B12, vitamin C, and folic acid. The prevalence of anemia in the pregnant women was of 37.1 % (Riskesdas 2013), and the maternal mortality was 359/100,000 live birth (SDKI 2012).
Three researchers from the Department of Community Nutrition, Faculty of Human Ecology, Bogor Agricultural University (Fema IPB), namely Hardinsyah, Eka Puspita Astriningrum, and Naufal Muharam Nurdin, conducted a research aiming at analyzing the intake of the folic acid, the vitamin B12, and the vitamin C in the pregnant women in Indonesia.
The vitamin B12 was needed to activate the folic acid and the cell metabolims, especially the gastrointestinal cells, the bone marrow, and the nerve tissue. The folic acid played a role in the metabolism of the amino acids needed in the formation of the red blood cells.
“The deficiency of the vitamin B12 and the folic acid during the pregnancy are associated with the increased risk of the premature birth, the low birth weight, and the disruption of the fetal growth,” said Hardinsyah.
The vitamin C was also needed during the pregnancy which served to help the absorption of non-heme iron by reducing the ferric iron into the ferro in the small intestine so easily absorbed, the deficiency of the vitamin C could also cause the hipoccampus damage.
From the result of the research using the secondary data of Total Dietary Study 2014 with the subject of the research, it was 606 pregnant women aged 14-49 years old, found that 88.3 percent of pregnant women experienced the lack of intake of heavy vitamin.
Based on the result of the analysis, the younger pregnant women with the middle and lower economic status were at higher risk of the folic acid deficiency. The pregnant women with the education level which was lower than SMA with the middle and low economic status were at higher risk to experience the deficiency of B12, while the deficiency of the vitamin C was more often to occur in the pregnant women having the education above SMA.
“The average intake of the folic acid and the vitamin C still has not met the standard requirement. The degree of fulfillment of the folic acid and the vitamin C is mostly classified as a heavy deficit, while the vitamin B12 is sufficient. The lower and intermediate economic status are at risk of 3.8 times increasing the deficiency of the folic acid and 1.6 times increasing the deficiency of the vitamin B12, the consumption of the vitamin source needs to be improved to prevent the problems during the pregnancy, such as the anemia, the prematurity, as well as the maternal and child mortality,” he said.
He added that the pregnant women aged 19-49 years tended to be risky of 22.3 percent less likely to have the folic acid deficiency. The education which did not complete SD and the compulsory learning had the risk of 2.5 times to increase the deficiency of the vitamin B12 and 2.0 times to increase the deficiency of the vitamin C.
“It needs the effort to increase the consumption of the sources of the folic acid such as the liver, the eggs, and the milk. The sources of B12 are such as the shellfish, the liver, and the fish, as well as the vitamin C such as the katuk leaves, the spinach, the guava, and the papaya,” he said.(IR/Zul)
