{"id":7136,"date":"2023-11-09T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-09T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whiteribbonalliance.org\/?p=7136"},"modified":"2023-11-08T19:54:57","modified_gmt":"2023-11-08T19:54:57","slug":"sindh-pakistan-pregnant-women-urge-action-in-the-face-of-extreme-heat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whiteribbonalliance.org\/stories\/sindh-pakistan-pregnant-women-urge-action-in-the-face-of-extreme-heat\/","title":{"rendered":"Sindh, Pakistan: Pregnant Women Urge Action in the Face of Extreme Heat"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Heat exposure linked to preterm birth, still birth, maternal hypertension.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

November 9, Washington DC \u2013 In the face of a deadly heatwave in Sindh Province, pregnant and postpartum women emphasize the urgent need for governments to prioritise affordable cooling solutions including access to fans, trees, and drinkable water and provide cash support. Climate change is driving deadly day and nighttime temperature hikes in low-income areas like Sindh Province across the world, but little is being done to build protections and maternal and newborn health is still often omitted from climate resilience planning, including in Pakistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInterviewees provided information about being sickened by miserably inescapable heat while pregnant, exhausted by keeping babies cool at night with hand fans, and heat making breastfeeding harder or impossible,\u201d Kristy Kade, White Ribbon Alliance\u2019s CEO said. \u201cTheir insights and recommendations for action are relevant globally and countries and companies responsible for the climate crisis owe worst-hit communities maternal health systems that are fit for heat waves, mass flooding and other disasters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

White Ribbon Alliance Global unveiled a report <\/a>today based on interviews with 16 pregnant and postpartum women in Sindh who endured catastrophic flooding and a deadly heat wave in 2022. Local authorities and experts in extreme heat and maternal health from around the world were also interviewed for the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accounts from pregnant and postpartum women painted a stark picture of their struggles including fainting spells, hospitalization due to dehydration, listlessness, loss of appetite, and the added burdens of managing pregnancy or a newborn alongside demanding agricultural and household responsibilities. Some also shared their fears that extreme heat was harming their developing fetuses. \u201c[The heat] also made me feel bad about being pregnant as my pregnancy experience got more complicated and worse in the recent heatwave,\u201d Hajra Osman, who needed treatment with an intravenous drip while pregnant because of severe dehydration, said. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Epidemiological research has linked extreme heat exposure during pregnancy and adverse outcomes e such as higher rates of infant death, and stillbirth as well as dangerous maternal health complications such as hypertension. Studies have also shown extreme heat disrupts access to healthcare. Rates of premature birth, stillbirth, many pregnancy diseases, exacerbating maternal mortality rates \u00a0in many countries. The climate crisis threatens \u00a0deepen these existing \u00a0inequities within and between countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marginalization of women and the maternal health system has rendered Pakistan\u2019s women and girls especially vulnerable to the climate crisis. The country is already grappling with some of the world\u2019s highest rates of maternal deaths, preterm birth, infant deaths and maternal illnesses, surpassing neighboring countries, save and except for Afghanistan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“[Heat] is a major problem \u2026 it has increased women\u2019s workload as we women are supposed to manage each and every thing.\u2026 I feel the heat the most during cooking in the afternoon, especially in making chapatis or rotis, and while working in the field. Sometimes, I want to leave everything behind and just rest, but it\u2019s not possible as we have to feed our children. Therefore, we cannot rest or stop working,” said Fatima Kamran, postpartum and lactating woman \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other key findings from the report <\/a>include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n