Anaemia is another major nutritional problem affecting the health of the people in the country. It 'is particularly serious among the women of child bearing age (especially during pregnancy and lactation) and young children.
Surveys done by various research organizations including the World Health Organization (WHO) have shown that in our country as many as 50% of preschool children of poor communities are anaemic. In case of women, particularly during pregnancy, as many as 70% or even more of them are likely to be anaemic (hemoglobin level less than 10 g per 100 ml). The anaemia among women tends to .increase with increasing number of pregnancies. You know that anaemia has certain harmful consequences. It-reduces the capacity for doing work and hence the effects the work output. Anaemic mothers often give birth to low birth weight babies (babies born with birth weight less than 2500 g or (2.5 kg). It can even lead to death of the mother.
In view of these serious consequences of nutritional anaemias, the Government initiated the National Nutritional Anaemia Control Programme.
Objectives : The programme aims at significantly decreasing the prevalence and incidence of anaemia in women in reproductive age group especially pregnant and lactating women and preschool children. The programme focuses on the following :
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- Promotion of regular consumption of foods rich in iron.
- Provision of iron and folate supplements in the form of tablets to the "high risk" groups.
- Identification and treatment of severely anaemic cases.
Target group : The beneficiaries of the programme are :
- Pregnant women
- Lactating mothers
- Family planning acceptors (women who accept family planning measures like intrauterine devices (IUD) and tubectomy)
- Children of-both sexes between ages 1 to 5 years.
Distribution Strategy : Supply of iron-folic acid tablets to the target population constitutes the main input. Two types of tablets being distributed are : (1) big tablets, each containing 68 mg of iron (ferrous sulphate) and 500 pg of folic acid (for women). One big tablet per day for 100 days should be given to pregnant woman after first trimester. The contact during the administration of tetanus toxoid should be utilized for distribution of tablets to pregnant woman after the first trimester of pregnancy. Similarly lactating woman and IUD- acceptors should receive one tablet per day for 100 days. Mothers often accompany their infants on immunization sessions. They call be handed over tablets during this time (2) small tablets, each containing 20 mg of iron and 100 pg of folic acid (for children) daily for 100 days every year. Register wed for growth monitoring of children can be used to record the intake of tablets also. For young children who cannot swallow tablets, iron and folk add (in the same dose, as in a small tablet) are given in 2 ml of syrupy liquid.
The health functionaries like Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) is responsible for distribution of tablets/liquid. Of late, the services of Anganwadi Worker (AWW) of Integrated Development Services (ICDS) are also being used to distribute the Iron-folate tablets.
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