Can you be anemic in pregnancy?

Some thoughts on anemia in pregnancy and an update about my practitioner learning program:

In pregnancy, blood volume expands by 50%

But red blood cells (RBCs) only expand by 30%

This is why some people say you probably aren’t anemic even if you test that way while you are pregnant.

I’ll start this post by saying I agree the test —> infusion pipeline has serious problems.

Here’s where the narrative that you can’t be anemic in pregnancy concerns me: inadequate blood volume expansion is one of the most dangerous situations for baby.

Baby is fed by the placenta.

The placenta is fed by the mother’s blood.

When the mother doesn’t have enough blood volume expansion, her body responds as though she is hemorrhaging. This means her body has to pull resources back to her own core body functions to preserve her own life.

Thus, not enough blood for the mother = not enough support of the placenta.

Think of the placenta like a plant that needs its roots to be well watered.