Maternal Death Rate Up in U.S.

For some reason, unbeknown st to experts, the maternal death rate among woman during childbirth appears to be on the rise in the U.S. according to a recent study issued by the Joint Commission.  Fortunately for American mothers, the tragedy is still a rarity but the study suggests that the number of mothers dying during childbirth or shortly after has increased substantially with the latest statistics being at around 550 deaths out of 4 million annual births across the country.

Experts can only hypothosize at this point as to why more pregnant women seem to be dying, citing that one of the causes could be linked to obesity which has been on the rise for the past four decades. Obesity can also lead to an increased need for a cesarean section which is also cited as another potential cause of the increase in maternal mortality.

Over weight women are more susceptible to health issues to begin with such as high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma and heart disease and obesity can put them at a higher risk for developing gestational diabetes during pregnancy which can be dangerous for her baby as well.  So add obesity to  pregnancy and even more weight gain and you have a lethal combination for potential problems during childbirth including complications and even possible death.    Studies are also concluding that if many of these issues go undetected before or during pregnancy, by the time mom enters the delivery room, it is too late and fatal conditions are harder to control.

The good news here is that women facing issues such as obesity and diabetes before  and during pregnancy can sucessfully deliver a healthy baby and live through it!  Key factors to a happy and healthy pregnancy woud be exercise to reduce the potential of both.  Another factor would be a healthy diet especially during pregnancy.

In conclusion, the best way and most obvious prevention would be to make sure you are in the best possible health before becoming pregnant.  Eat right, exercise regulary and visit your doctor often.  Once pregnant, you want to continue with a healthy life style and visit your obstetrician for personalized care for you and your baby.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 4:54 pm and is filed under Healthy Pregnancy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.