The Impact of Body Weight on Blood Hemoglobin Level When Using Some Modern Family Planning Methods in Egypt

Any abnormality in blood hemoglobin levels may result in serious complications leading to death. This study focuses on one of the important causes of these abnormalities, which is the impact of body weight on blood hemoglobin levels when women use some types of modern family planning methods. The statistical analysis in this study was conducted on 3450 currently married Egyptian women who are of reproductive age (15–49). These subjects were extracted from the 2014 EDHS sample. The methods of analysis used were the cluster analysis and the Kruskal-Wallis test as well as subsequent multiple pairwise comparisons. The cluster analysis classified the women into six groups, and the Kruskal-Wallis test showed significant differences in the blood hemoglobin levels among these six groups. The multiple pairwise comparisons revealed that using a hormonal method as opposed to a non-hormonal method shows significant differences in cases of overweight or obesity but not in cases of normal weight. On the other hand, when comparing women of the same weight who use two different hormonal methods or women of different weights who use the same method, the results do not reveal any significant differences. This study adds to the literature strong evidence that women's body weight impacts blood hemoglobin levels when using some types of modern family planning methods. As a result, doctors specializing in nutrition and obesity must be available in all governorates' family planning centers and units to provide advice, assistance, and guidance in selecting the appropriate family planning method for different weight statuses.