Anaemia during pregnancy is a significant public health
problem. Reportedly 56% of pregnant women in lowincome countries, in contrast to 18% in high-income countries, are affected. It is associated with a number of negative outcomes, such as preterm delivery, low birth weight, perinatal mortality and – for severe anaemia –maternal death. Iron deficiency (ID) has often been claimed to be the predominant cause of anaemia. Consequently, anaemia prevention and control strategies have focused on correcting this deficiency by routine iron
supplementation. Other contributing factors, e.g. parasitic infestations, chronic infections and other micronutrient deficiencies, have often been disregarded.