Food and Nutrition Insecurity During Pregnancy in French Guiana

According to the FAO, the gender gap in the prevalence of moderate and severe food insecurity widened in the year of the pandemic, with the prevalence of food insecurity among women 10% higher than among men. Scientific projections have estimated that the increased prevalence of wasting with the pandemic in low- and middle-income countries would result in 18-23% more deaths among children. Worst-case scenarios predict an increase of 8.3 to 38.6% in maternal deaths per month in low- and middle-income countries.

The systemic nature of food insecurity among pregnant women underlines the need to address it in a comprehensive and cross-cutting manner. It seems relevant to consider it as a major determinant of the health of populations that closely follows and feeds other health determinants (precariousness, low standard of living, housing conditions, etc.) or other health consequences (pregnancy monitoring, quality of life, deficiencies, body weight, etc.).

The quality of life would be affected with an increase in stress, anxiety and depression. The link between malnutrition and household food insecurity has already been suggested. Iron deficiency anaemia was significantly associated with food insecurity in the pregnant woman's household; it also predisposes to the risk of anaemia in children under 5. According to the WHO, anaemia is a major public health problem worldwide. It affects 40% of pregnant women, with a risk of irreversible effects on the child's brain development. According to longitudinal studies, the risk of premature delivery seemed to be more frequent when the pregnant woman was in a situation of food insecurity. A diet deficient in essential micronutrients is also thought to increase the risk of low birth weight, according to studies conducted on the African continent.

In Guiana between 2019 and 2020, the CARMA study measured micronutrient deficiencies (Iodine, Iron, Zinc, Vitamin A, folic acid, Vitamin 12) in women at the time of their delivery in Cayenne. This study revealed a high prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies with 81% of parturients having at least 1 deficiency and 46% having at least 2 deficiencies. The authors suggest that the negative impact of heavy metal impregnation is a factor that aggravates deficiencies.

This research takes a global approach to the problem of food security and does not focus on one type of nutritional deficiency or on a pregnancy-related pathology. The idea is to study the links, aggravating effects and interactions between access to food, situations of precariousness, deficiencies, lead or mercury intoxication and the impact with pathologies. This strategy is based on the hypothesis that there are permanent interactions between minerals, vitamins and heavy metals and that their impact on the health of the pregnant woman and the newborn is conditioned by these interactions and by the maternal and family background.