The intake of iron supplement and some related factors in pregnant women under supervision of health centers in Semnan, Iran

Objective (s): Iron deficiency is one of the most common nutritional disorders in pregnant women. Adequate iron intake during pregnancy is critical for maternal and fetal health and because of this، Iron supplementation is recommended during pregnancy. This study evaluates the intake of supplement in pregnant women in Semnan، Iran. This cross-sectional study was performed in health centers of Semnan، in which 400 pregnant in the second half of their pregnancy were randomly selected and studied. The evaluation included starting time and the consumption of Iron. The favorable time for iron prescription was considered as 4th month or the beginning of 16th week of pregnancy. Besides، by appropriate intake of iron، we address taking the supplement during the week before the study commences. 53. 5% of the participants were considered in a good condition considering the time span they started taking the iron supplement and 85. 3% of them consumed the supplement during the week before tests. There was a significant relationship between the knowledge of iron consumption and appropriate intake (P<0. 05). In addition، the time to start consuming the supplement was related to the history of anemia (P=0. 027)، as well as husband’s job (employed P=0. 043، worker P=0. 011، self-employmed P=0. 030). On the other hand، there was no significant association between taking the supplement and mothers’ age، literacy، husbands’ literacy، mothers’ job، number of children، nationality and the frequency of referring to health centers. Furthermore، the main reason of missing supplement intake was forgetfulness (45. 6%). The findings showed that a great percent of pregnant women do not have a desirable condition in case of taking the supplement and especially the time span of beginning to intake. As a solution to this problem، we suggest educating women about the necessity of using supplements، providing an easy access to supplements، organizing practical sessions with help of mothers and reminding them to consume the supplements at each visit in health centers for mothers especially those with anemia.