By Dr Lata Bhat , Pediatrics

When the blood does not have enough haemoglobin, or healthy red blood cells, it develops into a condition called anemia. In India, most of the anemia is due to iron deficiency i.e. poor iron in the diet. Second important reason is thalassemia.

Cause-

The causes of anemia include:

1. Blood loss
2. Poor production of red blood cells
3. Damage to the red blood cells

Type-

There are various types of anemia:

1. Iron deficiency anemia
2. Vitamin deficiency anemia
3. Chronic disease induced anemia
4. Aplastic anemia (not enough production of red blood cells)
5. Bone marrow disease-related anemia
6. Haemolytic anemia (destroyed red blood cells)
7. Sickle cell anemia (causes the red blood cell to take a crescent shape)
8. Other rare anemia (thalassemia and malarial anemia)

Symptoms-

When a patient has anemia, they have fatigue and loss of energy, headache getting sick frequently. Some other symptoms include-

1. Pale skin
2. Irregular or fast heartbeat
3. Chest pain
4. Difficulty in breathing
5. Headache
6. Dizziness

Treatment-

Treatment of anemia depends on the type. Some treatments include-

• Iron supplements: if you have iron deficiency anemia
• Vitamin B12 supplements: if you have vitamin deficiency anemia
• Blood transfusions: if you have aplastic anemia
• Bone marrow transplant or chemotherapy: for bone marrow disorder related anemia

Diet-

If you have anemia, your diet should comprise of the following foods-

• Spinach
• Beetroot
• Red meat
• Peanut butter
• Tomatoes
• Eggs
• Pomegranates
• Soy beans
• Whole grain bread
• Seafood
• Honey

Advice:

All pregnant women are more prone to iron deficiency in anemia because the iron requirement in a woman is double than the iron requirement in a man i.e. 2mg per kg per day. Whereas in man, it is 1mg per kg per day. It is because women have loss of blood regular periods in every month; they bear babies. As a routine, all babies are iron deficient. So, they must be given 3 mg per kg per day for 2-months. All preadolescent girls must be given iron supplement for 100 days.

Given pregnancy-post-partum i.e., after delivery. All ladies must receive iron supplementation. Food rich in Iron, e.g., green leafy, vegetables, bananas, mangoes, preferably food should be cooked in iron utensils.

For children-Too, much consumption of milk, especially in small children is very important, reason is Iron Deficiency. Parents should start weaning food at six months preferably a food like banana shake. Fruits and vegetables should be taken regularly. Jaggery and peanuts are also excellent sources of Iron.