How 900 stillbirths could be prevented
In the 10 per cent most deprived areas of the UK, twice as many babies (est.
900) as in the wealthiest are stillborn. This is stated in a research in the online journal BMJ Open. The only
area that doesn’t show any differences is when labour has started and the
mother is under the care of midwife or consultant. There are many factors that
could lead to a stillbirth. The research showed that smoking and obesity are
most common in deprived areas, but also a lack of attendance to regular
antenatal check-ups. These can detect diseases, high blood-pressure etc. This
makes the UK having the highest rate of stillbirths among 13 countries,
including the US and European Nations. Dr Lucy Smith, one of the authors, said
that they still need more data of stillbirths. “More than half the stillbirths
have unexplained causes. These are women who apparently have a normal
pregnancy. Deaths during labour have come down over the years, she said. "We know
what should be happening during and after labour, but those during the
pregnancy are really difficult to understand."
Wow! I did
not know this was such a serious problem in the UK. I mean, read the exact
rates, stated in the full article…quite shocking! Well, the UK may not have the
best health care system in the world, but when it concerns births, it cannot be
this ignorant. Maybe the UK’s government must pay more attention to the
minorities in the UK. I don’t know, but how do these mothers feel. It must be
terrible! Perhaps government should set up a campaign about the importance to
go to regular antenatal check-ups. Perhaps this helps to get the attention of
woman and makes them more aware of the hazards of for example smoking etc.
during pregnancy.
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