What Causes Anemia
Reduction in levels of hemoglobin is called anemia. It is very common in under developed and developing countries. The most common cause for anemia is under-nourishment. The diet required to replenish stores is usually not taken. Second most common cause is loss of blood e.g. during menstruation, injury and bleeding piles. Third cause of anemia is worm infestation (hookworm, pin worm, roundworm and tape worm). These worms feed on supply of blood and vitamins we take. Other causes like defects in bone marrow etc. will not be discussed here.
Foods to increase Hemoglobin
To increase hemoglobin level, the diet is the most important thing. A modified diet rich in vitamin B12, folate and iron is essential for the rapid rise in hemoglobin level.
Folate is commonly present in liver, kidney, spinach, cabbage, yeast, nuts and fruits. Vitamin B12 is exclusively present in foods of animal origin. Meat, liver, eggs, dairy products contain adequate amount of the vitamin B12. Vegetable sources do not contain vitamin B12.
Iron is present in red meat, liver, egg yolk, green leafy vegetables, dry fruits, jaggery, brown bread, unpolished rice.
Other foods which can help are bananas, black grapes, plums, strawberries, raisins, carrots, radish, celery, tomatoes, beets, almonds, soyabeans, fenugreek seeds etc.
How to Increase Hemoglobin
- All the above foods, rich in vitamin B12, folate and iron if consumed adequately will help in increasing hemoglobin.
- A diet for replenishing blood should be included in your menu.
- One teaspoon fresh juice of coriander can be taken with one teaspoon of honey.
- One teaspoon of fenugreek seeds or leaves cooked with rice and eaten regularly for 10 to 15 days shows remarkable rise in hemoglobin.
- One teaspoon of black sesame seeds should be soaked in warm water, then crushed and strained. It is to be mixed with a cup of milk sweetened with jaggery. This makes a good drink for quick rise in hemoglobin.
- Almonds also can be useful to increase hemoglobin. Five almonds, soaked in water overnight and then grounded to make a paste, which should be taken once daily in the morning.
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I am 18 and I am suffering from this disease or I think so , I am always(24×7) tired,weak, and continuously very dull, inactive (think I’m out of my mind) not talking to anyone. I am also suffering from anemia. ( I got this after a fever which I got when I was in my 10th grade). Are my symptoms due to anemia? I am a strict vegetarian. How do I recover from the anemia and weakness.
My hemoglobin level is 10.8 and there is a lot of confusion in my mind. How do I increase hemoglobin count. Is mental energy related to hemoglobin level. I also feel very tired and fatigued, could this be due to low hemoglobin levels?
Yes, all the symptoms that you have detailed, point towards anemia or a dip in the hemoglobin count in the blood, and 10.8 is on the lower side of the normal value.
Clinical manifestations of anemia are:
- weariness and fatigue
- sluggishness
- headaches
- breathlessness
- irritability
Management of anemia
Treatment and management of anemia requires a multi-disciplinary approach. Include the following foods in to your diet immediately. They are rich sources of iron (the building block for hemoglobin) and will help enhance the hemoglobin level greatly.
Foods that will boost hemoglobin levels are:
Dates
Raisins
Tomatoes
Spinach
Beet
Dietary tips:
- Stay away from caffeine. Tea and coffee interferes with the absorption of iron in the body.
- Also, when consuming iron rich foods, ensure that you consume some amount of lime along side. Lime is a rich source of vitamin C. and vitamin C augments iron absorption.
Get the hemoglobin level assessed after 3 months.
Also, to speed up the hemoglobin production in your body, an iron supplement is advocated during the initial phase of the treatment. Gradually (after 3 months) depend only on the natural sources of the nutrient.
I m 28 years old. My HB is very low. Its between 6 to 8 all the time. I had tried so many things to increase my hb , but did not get any good result.I work daily. Sometime my energy level r very low and I feel very weak. My iron level is also low. May be due to low hb. And my blood group is (B – ) RH Factor. Is it the best option for blood transfusion. Please suggest me. Thank you. Bhaskar Jain. From Delhi.
Anemia is a condition in which there is decrease of hemoglobin, and red blood cells.
It is one of the most common ailments of mankind.
The most common form of anemia is 1. Iron deficiency anemia. 2. folic acid, vitamin B12 deficiency anemia.
It is very important to search for the cause for the decrease in hemoglobin.
Anemia can be due to the loss of blood from some orifice or the organ of the body.
Like blood loss in hemorrhoids (piles), intestinal hook worms etc.
Or in the manufacturing of the RBC, due to certain vitamin deficiency like folic acid deficiency, vitamin B12 deficiency.
In thalessaemia where there is defective synthesis of hemoglobin. It is hereditary in origin.
Transfusion of blood is the last option, find out the proper cause of low hemoglobin, in most of the cases it can be corrected by proper diet and iron supplements in the form of iron tablets.
Treat underlying disease, like piles or gastric ulcer etc.
Check your blood for thalessaemia.
Always keep one thing in mind that before diagnosing any disease, always check why the disease is occurring. Directly kill the reason and you will see that your body has a mechanism of regaining good health.
I am 25, female, and just donated blood today. My hemoglobin count was an impressive 15.2. I last donated blood back in April; my count then was 15.8.
My diet is very rich in fish, shellfish, chicken, lean beef, nuts, and vegetables. I rarely crave sweets.
I am 42 years old and have always been anemic. Lately my hemoglobin count has dropped to below 9. I also have a low vitamin D count of 13. I am having some new symptoms that I have not experienced before. I have severe weakness in my legs and feel like I am going to pass out. I also have the regular symptoms of anemia and am wondering if the weakness of legs is due to anemia. Sometimes I have a strange feeling in the calf area and also get a very uncomfortable feeling over my left lung when I feel weakness. What are the natural ways to increase hemoglobin count.
My age is 28 years and my Hemoglobin level is 12.7. I have dark circles and I want know if these dark circles because of my low hemoglobin levels. Please let know if these dark circles will disappear when the hemoglobin levels become normal.
My sister has a hemoglobin level of 7.00 g/dl because she is a patient of Thalassemia intermedia. I want to know as how to increase or even maintain the normal hemoglobin levels to avoid blood transfusion.
To increase the HB level best is to eat beet-one small, big half just eat or make juice, 5 dates better if soaked overnight eat morning with milk better if soya milk
Drink one mug of tea green tea + mint + lemon juice + HONEY.
I am 22 years and my Hemoglobin level is 7.6 I have dark circles and weakness, I want know if these dark circles because of my low hemoglobin levels. Please let know if these dark circles will disappear when the hemoglobin levels become normal.
I am a teacher in a high school and one of my student is having the hemoglobin level of 5.8. She is somewhat strong but this condition has seriously affected her studies. Please give me some remedies to increase hemoglobin level quickly, so that she can continue her studies.
If her hemoglobin is really that low, it is critical she is evaluated immediately. She needs a blood transfusion. Some people naturally live at a lower level than others but anything below 7 is critical and needs a blood transfusion. Then her doctors need to figure out the cause and treat it.
I have a blood level of 8.1 with several other major illnesses and my local hospital keeps telling me that it’s not low enough yet even though they had to transfuse me 10
Months ago. They think that it’s a problem with my kidneys. For the last 3 months I’ve been passing out and feeling dizzy. Now I feel really sick and very tired. That’s getting worse
every day. What can I do?
My HB is 8.1 and I am 39 years old. My weight keeps on increasing and I am a hyper thyroid patient which is under control. My Physician told me that it must be a hormonal imbalance and he advised me to take some opinion of hemoglobist. What should I do?
The patient is 45 years of age and got menopause some years back. There is no other visible cause of blood loss. She is a chronic anemic but recently her blood hemoglobin is only 5.9%. She has been advised to take a pill of Fefol Z everyday along with nutritious foods. Guide to increase the hemoglobin.
I am 52, I have chronic Lymphicitic Leukaemia and my blood is regularly measured and apart from my white cell counts most thingsa are fine, I am not receiving treatment for the CLL as my white counts are still relatively low. My HB Has regularly been around 14.6, however I have had two recent operations, firstly a gastric bypass in September for which I need to take iron supplements and in the last 2 weeks a double hip replacement.
My HB has dropped to 7.1 with attended dizziness and fatigue. My doctor seems to think this is ok considering my history and keeps saying we will do more tests in a couple of weeks, but offers no advice or treatment. Can you help or advise.
My HB is 9.1 I feel week and tired I have lot of enthusiasm but It makes me slow, I want to do more work and because of this problem I become tired, I have localized goiter also, my hormone levels are normal. please help me with this problem.
My husband donated a kidney before 11 years back. Now his blood test report as follows:
Heamoglobin-13.7 g/dl., Leucocyte-4,500/cu mm., Neutrophils-66%, Lymphocytes-25%, Monocytes-4%, Eosinophils-5%, Basophils-0%, Platelets-Diminished, blood glucose fasting-100 mg/100ml, uric acid-6.1 mg/100ml., calcium–9.7mg. Is this is ok?
My son is Pre-Mature Baby (7 months) in hospital 3 times 30 cc blood given to my son for improving HB count. But HB count is reducing again and again, can sons HB is related to his mother diet, if yes then what food are necessary for mother.
I am 16 my diet is 1/2 litre milk per day, 2 plates of rice and dal per day, 2 egg omelets, corn flakes with milk and 2 spoon honey. I feel too much fatigue, frustrated, I feel sleepy in the day time. I practice football for 3 hours, while playing my eyes get tears in them and I feel stress on my mind. What’s my problem and what changes should I bring in my daily diet?
I usually work at night and I do smoke and drink tea regularly. Now days I am feeling very weak and my face is becoming somewhat dark as compared to earlier. Could you please tell me is this because of low in HB or some other reason.
My age is 38 male and I have 10 hp on 02.21.2011 previously one year before. I have 14 hp my question is whether I am in good condition or I have to improve the hp. What is the high and low-level or maximum and minimum levels should a man possess.
If you are non-veg best is chicken, if you are Veg, eat dark green veggies, take one pill iron every day, if you feel constipation take one pill vitamin C
And I am also recommending Prune juice, you must take. You will be fine in 3 months.
It is a serious issue, this will also effect your child, you should not be negligent about low hemoglobin levels and consult a doctor immediately. Follow the instructions given above in the article, it will help you and follow the diet strictly. You should take doctors advice before starting any medication or diet rectification.
Normal hemoglobin depends on age and for adults it depends on gender. The normal value is as follows:
Male: 14.5 to 16.5 gram/ deciliter.
Female: 12.0 to 14.5 grams/ deciliter.
Values above this signal increased hemoglobin in the blood.
High hemoglobin thickens the blood. The normal blood flow is impaired. There are more chances of blood clots. This causes decrease of oxygen in the tissues. It may manifest in bluish discoloration on the finger and toe. Even the brain does not receive the required oxygen and brain function is affected.
Almonds are known to increase hemoglobin; a person can reduce eating almonds, if he has abnormally high hemoglobin level.
I am 39 yr old. My hemoglobin level is 13.5, which is at par I want to increase it up to 15. My weight is also at par. I feel sleepy after having lunch say between 1.30 to 3 p.m. Pls. give some tips.