Were you aware that African-American women are more likely to die in a pregnancy-related death than white women?
NBC News is reporting that more black women are dying during pregnancy or post-delivery, due to lack of training to prevent postpartum hemorrhaging and other serious, life-threatening issues.
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Here is the story:
Each year in the United States, about 700 women die as a result of pregnancy or delivery issues — while 50,000 experience severe complications, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Black women are three to four times more likely than white women to die from pregnancy-related causes nationwide; in New York City, they are 12 times more likely to die. Postpartum hemorrhaging, or heavy blood loss, is one of the leading preventable causes.
“There seems to be something specific about the African-American experience here in the United States that seems to just have a toxic effect on the health of African-Americans,” said Swapna Reddy, who teaches a class on health disparity at Arizona State University. “It seems to be this double whammy, the intersectionality of being both African-American and also being a woman.”
The issue, Reddy continued, “is literally skin-deep.”
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