CALL FOR HIGHER BENEFITS FOR PREGNANT MUMS
Following her experiment spending a week in the life of a pregnant woman on benefits, Helen has called for a government review of benefit levels for pregnant mothers.
Helen limited herself to the food budget of a young person on Income Support for one week – around £21 – to see if it was possible to eat the diet recommended by doctors for pregnant women. You can read all about Helen’s experiment here.
She said “To eat the diet recommended for pregnant women on £3 per day is very tough. I found it was a daily choice between filling up on cheap foods like potatoes or choosing a wider range of fresh foods that left me hungry.
“Although I shopped very sensibly and went for the cheapest products, I found it impossible to eat the five fruit and vegetables per day that is recommended. I couldn’t buy enough meat or fish to get the nutrients needed by a pregnant woman. And I was also eating less than the recommended intake of calories each day for a woman, whereas a pregnant woman would expect to be putting on weight.
Helen has now written to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to ask for a full review of benefit levels for pregnant mothers.
Kate Green of the Child Poverty Action Group said, “Income support is currently inadequate to give an acceptable living standard, and the payment of a lower rate to under 25 year olds places them at a particularly stark risk.
“If a young woman becomes pregnant whilst on income support the £45.50 per week paid to cover living costs will not enable her to have the nutritious diet she needs with possible damage to her child including a higher risk of mortality and low birth weight, with long term health implications.
“One significant step to improve child outcomes for some of the most vulnerable children would be to increase the level of income support paid to their parents.”
Jane Landon of the National Heart Forum said, “Women from more deprived backgrounds tend to have babies of low birthweight, and this is partly explained by their poor nutritional status during pregnancy. Low birthweight is associated with a number of developmental problems and, in the longer term, is an independent predictor of coronary heart disease.
“Teenage mothers have at least the same nutritional needs as other mothers, so it is a scandalous act of discrimination to expect these vulnerable young women to afford a healthy diet on lower benefits. Adequate minimum income standards and benefit levels are essential to reduce health inequalities and enable all families to give their children a healthy start in life.”
Mary MacLeod of the National Family and Parenting Institute said, “If mothers on income support cannot afford a balanced and nutritious diet, this is likely to affect the health of both mother and baby and the baby’s development.
“Government has an important role to play in helping families to raise healthy and happy children and so it must ensure that no one suffers the ill effects of poverty. This is good for children, families and society.”
Helen added, “Ending child poverty is one of the Government’s most important objectives. We have achieved a huge amount through raising child benefit and introducing Sure Start, but the health of babies at birth matters too.
“We know that poor women are far more likely to have low birth weight babies than other mothers. These babies are 40 times more likely to die in their first year, and go on to suffer from educational underachievement and poorer health. [3]
“We must provide greater support for pregnant mothers on low incomes if we want to give every child a good start in life”
Filed under: Uncategorized on October 10th, 2006
