الفهرس 
Conclusion & RecommendationsOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
postpartum period or puerperium is traditionally defined as the time from immediately after the end of the labor until the reproductive organs have returned as nearly as possible to their pregravid condition, a period estimate to be around 6-8 weeks (Lumley et al, 2003). The postpartum period is a very special phase in the life of a woman. Her body needs to heal and recover from pregnancy and childbirth. A good postpartum care and well balanced diet during puerperal period is very important for the health of a woman and to prevent postpartum iron deficiency anemia (Cunningham, 2005 The greatest cause of postpartum anemia is the excessive blood lossduring delivery. The risk factors are multiple births, obesity, c- section and not exclusive breast feeding. The effects of anemia include weakness fatigue and impairment in immune system function (Marsh, 2006 Postpartum anemia was a serious health problem that requires more attention and high quality of care. So, simple blood studies of Hb levels should be made after delivery to detect anemia and well balanced diet should provided including sources of iron to prevent iron deficiency anemia during postpartum period (Abbott et al ., 2005 This study was conducted in order to assess the effect of a nutritional educational intervention on postpartum anemia among rural women Subject A random sample of 100 postpartum women was selected by taking their names and addresses from MCH center, then arranges the names of the women by numbers, and selects the odd numbers of postpartum Summary ٩٤ women to be included in the study. The postpartum women were selected according to the following criteria Free from chronic diseases Tools of Data collection Data was collected through using the following tools A. Interview questionnaire An interviewing questionnaire was constructed and developed by the researcher after reviewing the related literature to collect the necessary data from the postpartum women. It included the following Part I: - Postpartum assessment: which include a -Sociodemographic data: it included data about name, age educational level, occupation, family size and family income b -Medical history: it included data about absence of chronic disease inbthe postpartum womenc -Menstrual history: The researcher asked the postpartum women aboutage at menarche, regularity of menstruation, volume of menstrual blood loss, duration and interval between two menstrual cycles. The severity of menstrual blood loss was determined and scored according to days of bleeding and amount of blood loss d- Reproductive history: The researcher asked the postpartum women about numbers of pregnancies, deliveries, live children, still births number of abortions, family planning methods (type and duration e- Current labor: It contains data about type of current labor, assessment of lochia, types of feeding and complications of current labor f- Symptoms and signs related to anemia: Symptoms as headache fatigue (feeling tired), numbness and coldness in hands and feet, reduced concentration, dizziness, shortness of breath, tachycardia and irritability Summary ٩٥ Part II: - Nutritional assessment which include a-Nutritional habits : It included data about some of the nutritional habits of the postpartum women including drinking tea ( frequency per day, timing in relation to meal ) taking breakfast, frequency of weekly consumption of meat, fish and poultry intake, green leafy vegetables rich in iron and citrus fruits rich in vitamin C b- Knowledge of postpartum women about postpartum anemia: it>included 10 questions (8 close-ended and 2 open-ended II. Biophysiological measurements It included the following a. Anthropometric measurements For each postpartum woman weight and height were measured and recorded to measure Body Mass Index (BMI b. Laboratory investigation It included blood analysis to assess hemoglobin level The main findings of the study revealed the following More than two third of the studied sample (78%) reported that they had medical history of prenatal anemia Approximately one third of the studied sample (30.8%) who had moderate anemia was among age group 35 years Secondary education and working women had moderate anemia more than universities women and housewife women. Concerning menstrual history, there were statistical significant differences among postpartum women regarding number of menstrual days where 100% of women who had 5-10 menstrual days had moderate anemia Summary ٩٦ Concerning reproductive history, one third of the studied sample (35% reported that they had 3-7 pregnancies and (30%) of the women had 3-5 deliveries As regard to using of family planning, more than half of the studied sample (51%) reported that they had history of using family planning The studied sample who reported using of IUD method had (31%) of moderate anemia than other methods There were statistical significant differences among postpartum women regarding type of delivery where more than one half of the sample (62% reported they had normal labor and (38%) had cesarean section There were statistical significant differences among postpartum women regarding type of feeding where more than two third of the sample (86% reported they were breast fed and (14%) gave formula feeding As regard to BMI, 40% of women who were overweighed and 34% of women who were obese had more anemia than normal weighted women Concerning symptoms of anemia, there were statistical significant differences among postpartum women regarding difficult to concentrate and numbness or coldness in hands or feet that (35.7%) of postpartum women who had difficult to concentrate and (26.7%) of postpartum women who had numbness or coldness in hands or feet had moderate anemia Concerning nutritional habits, there were statistical significant differences among postpartum women regarding times taking vegetables by week that women who had taken vegetables 3-5 times had no moderate anemia than other habits as(20.6%) of taking protein once week or (20.8%) of taking fruits 3 times/week. There were statistical significant differences among postpartum women regarding comparison between pre intervention and post intervention anemic status, that in pre intervention 83% had mild anemia Summary ٩٧ and 17%had moderate anemia. In pos intervention, 31% reached normal Hb level, 60% had mild anemia and 9% had moderate anemia There were statistical significant differences among postpartum women regarding comparison between pre intervention and post intervention knowledge, that in pre intervention, 78% had poor knowledge and 22% had good knowledge.