Helminthiasis, iron intake, and hemoglobin levels in pregnant women

Abstract

The study aims to analyze the correlation of helminthiasis, iron intake, and hemoglobin levels in pregnant women in the Public Health Center of Kemusu 2 Boyolali, Central Java, Indonesia. A cross-sectional research design was applied to 164 pregnant women who are in the second-third trimester and selected using simple random sampling. The Cyanmethemoglobin tool was utilized to measure the respondents’ hemoglobin levels. The iron intake was obtained using the Semi-Quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire (SQ-FFQ). Data analysis applied the Pearson's correlation test. This study discovered that 12.2% of subjects are infected by Ascaris lumbricoides; 34.1% and 36.6% of the subjects suffer from iron intake deficiency and anemia. There is a correlation between helminthiasis, iron intake, and hemoglobin levels in pregnant women (p = .005 and p = .007). Nutrition program is still needed to prevent the helminthiasis, reduce the prevalence of anemia in pregnant women, and improve their iron intake through supplementation and nutrition education.