11 Apr 2022 | 4 min Read
Sayani Basu
Author | 607 Articles
A mother nurtures and supports the unborn within her, experiencing some of the toughest physical and mental changes. Hence, she has the complete right to enjoy safe motherhood. Safe motherhood ensures that all expectant mums should receive the care they need to be safe and healthy throughout pregnancy and even after childbirth.
Safe motherhood is important for the well-being of both the mum and the baby. To raise awareness about adequate access to care during pregnancy, childbirth, and postnatal services, India observes National Safe Motherhood Day every year on April 11.
However, safe motherhood is not only about avoiding death and morbidity. It stands for the health of the mother and baby. This includes the physical, mental, and social well-being of pregnant women during pregnancy and post pregnancy.
It is important for the husbands and other family members to ensure a safe environment for the expectant mother.
Here are some of the ways how families can ensure safe motherhood for the expectant mum:
Certain screening and diagnostic tests along with scans are also prescribed. These can accurately find whether a foetus has a specific problem. These also include amniocentesis, blood tests, CVS, and ultrasound exams.
The diet should provide for the needs of the growing foetus, maintenance of the mum’s health, physical strength required during labour, and successful lactation.
Protein rich foods are essential for the growth of the developing baby. Families should ensure that the diet of the expecting mum contains plenty of milk, eggs, fish, poultry, and meat.
If she is a vegetarian, she must have different cereals, a lot of pulses, and nuts.
She should have iron-rich foods that are important for making the baby’s blood and reducing the incidence of anaemia.
She can lie down for an hour or so during the day and needs at least six to 10 hours of sleep every night.
Families should ensure that the mum is getting enough time to rest and has help at hand when needed.
Families should encourage the expecting mum to avoid heavy physical labour during pregnancy.
The mum-to-be feels more confident to defend against any type of pain or problem easily, when she has a strong support system.
The benefits of maternity insurance include financial protection during maternity, pre and post-natal care, pre and post hospitalisation expenses, ambulance charges, and delivery expenses.
The coverage is available for both normal as well as C-section deliveries. Some policies might also include the cost of termination due to complications.
As a partner, do not miss any of the doctor’s appointments. Take her for ultrasound scans to have a close look at the baby. These scans also help doctors identify certain birth defects like cleft lips and palates (an opening or split in the roof of the mouth of the foetus).
Husbands could encourage their expecting wives to exercise regularly or join prenatal classes along with them to learn about preterm labour, relaxation techniques, and variations in labour and breastfeeding.
Safe motherhood is a matter of human rights and social justice. Besides empowering women with equal rights, the constant development of the country can be achieved by taking holistic care of pregnant women, and ensuring a safe environment for them. The first initiative should be taken by the families themselves.
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