BlogHers Act: Important Facts on Maternal Health
by BlogHers Act has some great things in the works for our year-long campaign to make a difference in maternal health around the globe. We will have an announcement on our first actions very soon. In the meantime, following are some of the key statistics on the issue. As you can see, this is just the tip of the iceberg with lots of potential to help, and many other project areas we can and will take on. Because the BlogHers are on board, you know it will be a big, effective, action-oriented, productive, inspiring year!
Here are but a few of the facts and issues related to maternal health -- we have lots of work to do.
- The complications of pregnancy and childbirth are a leading cause of death and disability among women of reproductive age in developing countries.
- A woman dies every minute of every day from complications of pregnancy or childbirth.
- It is estimated that around 529,000 women die each year from maternal causes. And for every woman who dies, approximately 20 more suffer injuries, infection and disabilities in pregnancy or childbirth. This means that at least 10 million women a year incur this type of damage.
- The foundations for maternal risk are often laid in girlhood, for example women whose growth has been stunted by chronic malnutrition are vulnerable to obstructed labor.
- The factors that cause maternal morbidity and death also affect the survival chances of the fetus and newborn, leading to an estimated 8 million infant deaths a year (over half of them fetal deaths) occurring just before or during delivery or in the first week of life. Not to mention the survival of the children the mother already has.
- Women are most in need of skilled care during delivery and the immediate postpartum period, when roughly three quarters of all maternal deaths occur. However, only 59% of births in the developing world are attended by a doctor, nurse, or midwife that could provide skilled care.
For more information, check out these links:
Newsweek, Seven Ways to save a mother’s life
Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health
The Millennium Campaign (Goal # 5 – Improve Maternal Health)
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Thanks Cooper & Emily...
It's kind of shocking that maternal death rates are rising in the U.S. Then again, I don't think we rank in the top nations for infant survival either, so our self-perception as an advanced society might be a little overblown.
Isn't there some study that shows that healthy matriarchs have positive ripple effects on the *economic* health of a family, village etc?
Hmm. Might have to do some Googling,. unless someone knows what I'm referring to.
Elisa Camahort
BlogHer
elisa@blogher.org
Great point Elisa!
In fact, a big conference, Women Deliver, is converging in London in October to discuss this very topic.
From the site - http://www.womendeliver.org/media/Overview_Why_Women_Deliver.htm:
The experts agree: with increased political will and adequate financial investment, most women and infants can survive so that their families, communities and nations can thrive.
Women Deliver – 18-20 October 2007, London
Invest in Women: It Pays!
Honorary Co-Chairs Asha-Rose Migiro, UN Deputy Secretary-General, and Mary Robinson, president of Realizing Rights and former president of Ireland, will join 2,000 world leaders in the finance, health and development fields for high-level plenaries, 80 separate sessions and lively debates in five critical areas:
Improving women’s and newborn health (family planning, safe motherhood, unsafe abortion, HIV/AIDS, sexuality education, comprehensive reproductive health);
Advancing human rights (women’s rights, gender equality, reproductive rights, poverty reduction, freedom from violence);
Expanding financial resources (government aid, health system reform, corporate commitment, private funding and other social programs);
Building political will (advocacy, communications, youth leadership); and
Promoting women in the world (looking to the future of girls’ education, women and work, leadership development).
They will ask and answer these central questions:
How can we best build on past success and 20 years of research and experience?
What needs to be done differently?
Who can make it happen?
How do we get it done
New ways of investing in women will make pregnancy safer and enable women to deliver – not just the next generation but everything development advocates work to achieve: economic progress, rising rates of literacy and productivity, and better health and well-being for families, communities and nations.
Maternal Health- Eating Disorders and Body
Image Issues
We are new to BlogHer and were very excited to learn about this initiative!
For the last decade, we have worked to raise awareness about disordered eating, body image issues, and the growing pressures on girls and women to be thin and "perfect." In recent years, we have started exploring how these pressures leave many mothers obsessed with pregnancy weight gain or despairing because they can't "get their bodies back" to measure up to Hollywood's ridiculous standards. We believe that moms need extra support in developing healthy attitudes towards food, weight, and their bodies so they can instill healthy attitudes in their children. Consider these findings:
More women are choosing to go under the knife for post-baby tummy tucks, breast lifts, and laser surgeries than ever before. Some surgeons are now offering "Mommy Makeover" packages:
http://5resolutions.blogspot.com/2007/09/extreme-mommy-makeovers.html
Women who regularly read tabloids are more likely to describe themselves as "fat" than those who do not follow celebrity culture, and feel heightened pressure to lose their baby weight quickly after delivery:
http://5resolutions.blogspot.com/2007/08/baby-bumps-and-skinny-jeans.htm...
New research shows that pregnancy may trigger binge eating disorder
http://www.13wham.com/guides/health/story.aspx?content_id=7ac1904f-b711-...
And that the stress of pregnancy can lead to eating disorders:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/08/30/nmum130....
In the September issue of Marie Claire, one mother detailed her struggle with bulimia in an essay titled "Purging During Pregnancy: The Secret Life of an Eating Disordered Mom." The editors note in a sidebar that "No one knows whether the problem is becoming more prevalent (the new societal pressure to look hot while pregnant may be a factor) or whether women are just more willing to deal with it openly. But it is clear that a lot of the advice geared toward such women by well-meaning doctors and pregnancy groups just isn't all that helpful."
We hope that your maternal health campaign will address this lack of understanding and provide resources for the many moms and moms-to-be who struggle with disordered eating and poor body image. We would be happy to lend our experience and insights to your efforts!
Claire Mysko & Magali Amadei
http://5resolutions.blogspot.com
5resolutions@insidebeauty.org
This week's Newsweek
I just wanted to direct your attention to this week's Newsweek (Oct. 1) - the cover story, "A Shot of Hope" (p. 51) is on global giving, headline "How to Heal The World (Or at least make a real difference)". This particular feature focuses on vaccines as an example of how to affect global change. Great photo of mother and baby in Ghana on the cover.
Sairy