Nearly 80 per cent of pregnant women coming to the King George's Medical University (KGMU) have symptoms of anaemia, a condition in which one lacks enough healthy red blood cells to carry adequate oxygen to your body's tissues.

KGMU Vice-Chancellor Lt. Gen. (retd) Vipin Puri, said that out of every 10,000 pregnant women coming to KGMU for delivery nearly 8,000 have anaemia.

"Not only poor but even girls and women of the middle class and rich families have been found to be suffering from anaemia because of lack of nutrition either due to poverty or lack of awareness about proper nutritious diet," he said.

Prof S.P. Jaiswar, head of the obstetrics and gynaecology department, at KGMU, explained that due to a deficiency of iron, vitamin A and protein, the body does not make enough red blood cells which leads to a decline in haemoglobin levels, causing anaemia. "It is important to address this issue because healthy women and children are the foundation of a strong nation," he said.

The doctors said that even among the middle classes and the rich, there is a lack of awareness about nutritious food. "Women tend to eat the wrong food which includes fast food, but this does not improve their nutritional intake which is extremely necessary during pregnancy," they said.