Anemia is a condition in which your blood is not carrying enough oxygen to all the tissue in your body. The most common symptom is fatigue. Some women have no symptoms.

As your pregnancy advances, your blood volume grows reaching its highest level around 28 weeks. It is normal to have slight anemia as your red blood cell production catches up with your blood volume. When we run your 28 week blood test, we’ll know more about what kind of anemia you may be experiencing. We will follow up with another blood test at 36 weeks, or sooner based on your results.

When your red blood cells do not contain enough hemoglobin, this is called iron deficiency anemia. Supplementing chlorophyll or iron + vitamin C usually corrects this issue.  Our recommendation is Standard Process Chlorohphyll capsules or Nature’s Sunshine liquid chlorophyll sold at the birth center.

When your body is making smaller red blood cells or too few blood cells, this is called microcytic anemia. It is an indication of folate and B12 deficiency. Supplementing folate and B12 usually corrects this issue.

When we review your 28 week blood test, we will make a recommendation for supplementation if needed. Here are some general guidelines:

Iron-deficiency anemia:

Hemadyn Pro (sold at birth center): Take 2 capsules, 3 times per day throughout the rest of pregnancy.

If the problem isn’t corrected, we may recommend prescription iron supplements.

Micro-cytic anemia:

Folate and B12: Take as directed on the packaging, starting with the lowest dose, only increasing when directed.

Hemadyn Pro (sold at birth center): Take 2 capsules, 3 times per day throughout the rest of pregnancy.

If the problem isn’t corrected, we may recommend prescription iron supplements.

Some other things you can do to improve your anemia:

• Increase protein intake and take digestive enzymes
• Avoid taking your prenatal vitamin, Hemadyn Pro, folate, or B-12 along with any dairy
• Increase your intake of vitamin C