Maternal mortality rates (MMR) are unacceptably high in Sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria for example,
MMR have been reported to be 630 deaths per 100,000 live births, thus ranking Nigeria 11th country
in the world with highest MMR, among 184 countries. Malnutrition has been identified as a key
underlying cause for maternal deaths in Africa. Malnutrition pre-disposes women, particularly
pregnant and lactating women, to various forms of health conditions such as increased risk of
infection, anaemia, visual impairment, goitre among others. These in turn lead to gestational and
postnatal complications such as obstructed labour, gestational diabetes, hypertensive disorders,
haemorrhage and in fatal cases, death. Malnutrition also increases the risk of intra-uterine growth
retardation (IUGR) and neural tube defect in the children born to these malnourished women.
Environmental and economic conditions have huge impacts on the nutritional status of women in
Sub-Saharan Africa; poverty in this population limits food choices, thus affecting their quality of diet
and ultimately, nutrient absorption. Micronutrient malnutrition, also called hidden hunger, is the main
form of malnutrition found among pregnant and lactating women in Africa, this coupled with
undernutrition have severe implications on the well-being of these women. Research has however
shown what works. Micronutrient supplementation and food-based strategies such as diet diversity,
food fortification and biofortification have been reported in many studies as vehicles to combat the
malnutrition scourge in Sub-Saharan Africa. This review aims to discuss the nutritional status of
pregnant and lactating women in Nigeria; the different forms of malnutrition found within this
population will be reviewed, with particular focus being on the food-based strategies to address
them.