Hospitals Report Rise in Cases of Anemia Among Women

Health facilities across Kenya are reporting a worrying increase in anemia diagnoses among women, particularly pregnant mothers, highlighting a growing public health concern. According to recent hospital data and research studies, many women are arriving at antenatal wards with dangerously low hemoglobin levels—some so low that they require urgent blood transfusions.
Experts point to a combination of factors fueling the trend. In Kilifi County, where food shortages have hit nutrition hard, more than half of expectant women attending Rabai Sub‑County Hospital have been found to be anemic. Poverty, limited access to iron-rich foods, and recurrent infections like malaria are all contributing to the decline in healthy blood levels. Meanwhile, in a study at Kilifi County Referral Hospital, 54% of pregnant women were found to be anemic — with food frequency, fruit and vegetable intake, and red meat consumption strongly linked to lower risk.
Nationally, data show the problem is worsening. Research mapping maternal anemia between 2016 and 2019 found the number of pregnant women with anemia jumped by 90% in just three years — with both moderate and severe forms rising sharply. Clinicians warn that such high prevalence poses grave risks, including higher maternal mortality, low birth weights, and even complications during delivery.
In response, public health advocates are calling for a multi-pronged strategy. This includes expanding iron and folic acid supplementation, increasing food security interventions, and scaling up nutrition education. Local hospitals are also being urged to strengthen screening for anemia during early antenatal visits and to improve access to safe blood transfusion services — steps seen as critical to reversing the alarming rise in anemia among Kenyan women.