In this comment piece for The Lancet, Ian Roberts, Professor of Epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Camara Phyllis Jones, Levehulme Visiting Professor at King’s College London, highlight the link between iron deficiency anaemia, postpartum haemorrhage and structural racism.
The authors use the gardener’s tale allegory to explain how racism impacts anaemia and argue that urgent attention should be paid to addressing racial inequalities that lead to disparities in maternal health and intergenerational disadvantage.