Wilson Center | Maternal Health Initiative

Dear friends of the Maternal Health Initiative, As you may know, the Wilson Center is being reduced to its statutory minimum function. As a result, we are no longer continuing with planned Maternal Health Initiative programming. Thank you for your support over the last several years. Sincerely, The Maternal Health Initiative Team

👩🍼Newborn Health in 2023 New reports from the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) highlight key findings from 2023: 🔹 4.8 million children died before their fifth birthday, with nearly half of these deaths occurring in the first month of life.  🔹 1.9 million stillbirths occurred, with 45% happening during labor, often due to maternal infections or lack of timely medical care.  🔹 Beyond the newborn period, the leading causes of child deaths include pneumonia, malaria, and diarrheal diseases.  🔹 A child’s risk of death before age five is 80 times higher in the highest-mortality country than in the lowest-mortality country. 🌍 In 2023, 50% of newborn deaths occurred in the 29 countries with a UN humanitarian response plan, where access to maternal and newborn care is often limited. Humanitarian crises, such as conflict, weather-related disasters, and forced displacement, increase risks for newborns. Disruptions in healthcare systems lead to shortages of skilled birth attendants, essential medicines, and emergency care, increases the likelihood of preventable deaths. ➡️ Read more on the impact of humanitarian crises on women and newborns on our blog: https://lnkd.in/edG7y9VB #NewbornHealth #GlobalHealth #MaternalCare #StillbirthPrevention #ChildHealth #HumantarianCrises 

🔬 Can trauma be inherited? A groundbreaking study from Yale University on Syrian refugee families suggests that violence and trauma leave lasting biological marks, not just on those who experience it firsthand, but on their children and even their grandchildren. This first-of-its-kind study examined epigenetic changes, chemical modifications to DNA that influence gene function, across three generations of Syrian refugees. The findings revealed that women directly affected by war-related violence show altered DNA methylation (DNAm), a common epigenetic modification. These changes were also observed in their grandchildren, even if they had no direct exposure to war. Another critical finding was epigenetic age acceleration, meaning that children exposed to prenatal violence showed biological aging beyond their actual age, highlighting how in utero stress impacts lifelong health. Despite the trauma, the researchers also highlight resilience, the ability of individuals and communities to adapt and thrive even in the face of adversity. 📢 Why does this matter?  The study provides the first-ever evidence that trauma and stress are biologically embedded across generations, offering new insights into the long-term impacts of war, sexual violence, domestic abuse, and gun violence. In 2022, about 600 million women lived within 50 kilometers of armed conflict, facing direct and indirect consequences of violence. 👉 Read more about the diverse ways women and girls are affected by conflict in our #PolicyBrief: https://lnkd.in/gSwTSY2W #Epigenetics #TraumaScience #IntergenerationalTrauma #ViolencePrevention #Resilience #WomensHealth  

☀️ Extreme Heat & Heart Disease 🫀 New research in the European Heart Journal examined the links between high temperatures to cardiovascular disease in Australia. Research found that heart disease numbers could double or triple in the next 25 years if current weather trends continue. Extreme weather events can affect pregnancy and newborn health directly. In pregnant women, exposure to extreme heat can result in obstetric complications such as gestational hypertension and cardiovascular events. ➡️ Visit our website to read more about its impacts on maternal and newborn health in our Policy Brief: https://lnkd.in/ew3pPH76 #HeartHealth #ExtremeHeat #HeartDisease #CardiovascularHealth #PublicHealth  #MaternalHealth #NewbornHealth  

800 women. Every day. 🏥 Every two minutes, a mother dies from causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, many of which are preventable.   🦠 A new WHO study highlights that 23% of maternal deaths are due to indirect causes from chronic and infectious diseases like HIV & AIDS, malaria, anemia, and diabetes. These conditions often go undiagnosed or untreated until it's too late, putting millions of women at risk. 🩸 Hemorrhage (severe bleeding) and hypertensive disorders like preeclampsia remain the leading causes of maternal mortality, ➡️ Read more on the drivers of global maternal mortality in our #PolicyBrief: https://lnkd.in/ew3pPH76   #MaternalHealth #MaternalMortality #WomensHealth #ChronicDisease #InfectiousDisease #Pregnancy #GlobalHealth

In 2016, the Canadian Red Cross partnered with the Pakistan Red Crescent Society to address water scarcity and health disparities in the Tharparkar region of Pakistan. The project installed solar-power water pumps in 10 remote communities, which provided not only sustainable water access for the region, but also improved health and hygiene, particularly for women and girls. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eh37Bth2 #Pakistan #WomenandGirls #Sustainability #WaterAccess

India aims to eliminate TB by 2025, five years ahead of the WHO deadline. But with only two-thirds of the needed funds allocated, progress has been slow. TB cases dropped from 211 to 199 per 100,000 people since 2016 to 2022, but elimination requires a sharp decline to 44 per 100,000 cases. India is also facing challenges with TB drug stockouts, staff and infrastructure shortages, low diagnostic funding, and high treatment costs which are slowing progress. TB in mothers increases the risk that babies will die by six times, and doubles the risk of their being born prematurely or with low birth weight. TB also causes 6-15% of all maternal mortality. #Tuberculosis #PublicHealth #EndTB #India #TBElimination #MaternalHealth

💜 Tomorrow is International Women’s Day. Women globally experience 25% more years of poor health than men, with even greater disparities across races and ethnicities. From PMS, menopause, and PCOS to chronic diseases, women’s health conditions are often understudied, underfunded, and undertreated.  To #AcceralateAction, we must address the women’s health gap through: 💜 Inclusion in clinical trials to understand sex as a biological variable and improve prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.  💜 Factoring sex as a biological variable into all research, design, analysis, and reporting.  💜 Addressing health disparities across different populations and backgrounds.  💜 Bridging the data, treatment, and care delivery gaps to ensure better outcomes for all women. 🔗 Visit our website to learn how we can #AccelerateAction for women’s health through research, investment, and eliminating inequities: https://lnkd.in/ewnQFMwp #IWD2025 #WomensHealthMatters #WomensHealthGap #WomensHealth #MaternalHealth #WomensResearch #InternationalWomensDay  

🌍 Drivers of Global Maternal Mortality 🌍 Every 2 minutes, a woman dies from preventable pregnancy-related complications, nearly 800 women every day. Nearly 95% of maternal deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, with Sub-Saharan Africa bearing the highest burden. 🚨 Key Causes:  🧬 Biomedical: Postpartum hemorrhage, preclampsiaa, and sepsis   🏥 Social Determinants of Health: poverty, lack of education, and healthcare access  🌍️ Humanitarian Crises: conflict leads to insufficient healthcare systems, poor quality of care, and shortages of workers and supplies.  🌦️ Extreme weather impacts: changing air quality, access to food, prevalence of mosquito and tick-borne diseases  🔎 Solutions:  ✅ Strengthen health systems & invest in maternal care  ✅ Address social determinants & gender inequality  ✅ Integrate maternal health into humanitarian & extreme weather events policies  ➡️ Read more in our #PolicyBrief: https://lnkd.in/ew3pPH76 #MaternalHealth #GlobalHealth #MaternalMortality #SocialDeterminantsofHealth  

🇺🇦👩🍼 Pregnant Women in #Ukraine continue to face the consequences of war. Stress from the war contributes to devastating health outcomes for pregnant women and their families. The national rate for #preterm births in Ukraine is 6% according to 2023 data. The rate rises in areas closer to front-line zones. According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the highest rate is in #Kherson, where 11.8% of newborns were born prematurely, almost double the national average. The Kherson region also has the highest #stillbirth rate in Ukraine. 🏥 Maternal and reproductive health outcomes face significant challenges during conflict and crises. Conflict often leads to disrupted healthcare systems, limited access to essential services, and increased vulnerability for pregnant people and their children. Warfare also destroys healthcare infrastructure, making it difficult for pregnant women to access prenatal care, safe deliveries, and postnatal care. The resulting lack of skilled healthcare providers and functional facilities increases the risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth. ➡️ Visit the link in our bio to read more about Women and Girls in Wartime in our #PolicyBrief: https://lnkd.in/gSwTSY2W #MaternalHealth #NewbornHealth #PregnantWomen #MaternalHealthInitiative