Are we ignoring the Importance of Sanitation while Mourning the Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes

Abstract

There is enough literature available in the public domain in defining risk factors for the prediction of adverse pregnancy outcomes; hardly a few discuss sanitation as a risk factor. Sanitation is under-researched to adverse pregnancy outcomes. The consequences of maternal sanitation behavior during the period of pregnancy has never received the required attention. With the revelation of Swatch Bharat Mission in 2014, India would unquestionably outhouse one of its stickiest blemishes of open defecation by providing individual latrines to every household, what remains is the need to promote the usage of those latrines by bringing a change in people’s behavior and understanding the cultural barriers. We tried to shed some light on the importance of sanitation in the follow up of adverse pregnancy outcomes in India. The result found that sanitation is one of the crucial facets for women who are either planning to have a baby or are about to deliver a baby as findings suggest evidence between sanitation and adverse pregnancy outcome. There is a need to study this aspect more rigorously as this is still an under-researched area. Further studies in this dimension will help policymakers in designing the appropriate interventions to reduce the adverse pregnancy outcomes associated with poor sanitation.