• Oct 21, 2021 @ 8:00am - Oct 28, 2021 @ 12:00am
• Webinar | On Demand Session
• FIGO World Congress of Gynecology and Obstetrics
• Register

Maternal nutrition during pregnancy remains a neglected area, even as an alarming number of women continue to suffer from multiple micronutrient deficiencies in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The consequences of maternal malnutrition are severe, as women with severe anemia are twice as likely to die during pregnancy, and children born to malnourished mothers are more likely to be born too small, too soon, or stillborn. While iron and folic acid (IFA) supplementation as an intervention has been an integral part of antenatal care programs around the globe for the past five decades, it does not provide all the micronutrients required during pregnancy. Multiple micronutrient supplementation (MMS) has been demonstrated to provide additional benefits compared to IFA in improving pregnancy and birth outcomes, yet it has not been adopted widely in LMICs.

This session, therefore, aims to increase awareness and understanding of the relationship between maternal malnutrition and birth outcomes, share the evidence on the impact of maternal nutrition interventions ready to scale up including multiple micronutrient supplementation on birth outcomes, and share country experiences related to the integration of MMS in antenatal care services. It features global experts in maternal nutrition, who will each focus on one key area of maternal malnutrition and MMS.