Around the world, anemia affects nearly 2 billion individuals, making it a significant health issue. It causes more suffering globally than low back pain, diabetes, or even the combination of anxiety and depression.
Nonetheless, over the past several decades, investments aimed at reducing anemia have not significantly alleviated its considerable global burden.
Dr Sweta Lunkad, Consultant – Heamato Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant, Jupiter Hospital, Baner, Pune shares the impact of anemia on health in-details.
Anemia occurs when a person’s blood does not contain enough healthy red blood cells to transport oxygen around the body. This reduction in oxygen delivery leads to many of the typical symptoms of anemia, such as exhaustion, breathlessness, dizziness, concentration difficulties, and problems with work and everyday activities.
Health complications of anemia
Anemia can cause serious health complications when left untreated. Severe anemia can result in unexplained fatigue and make it impossible to do everyday tasks.
Anemia can result in a fast or irregular heartbeat, known as arrhythmia. In cases of anemia, the heart has to pump a greater volume of blood to compensate for the insufficient oxygen levels. This can result in heart failure or an enlarged heart.
During pregnancy, anemia can result in higher occurrences of anxiety and depression, premature labor, postpartum hemorrhage, stillbirths, and low birth weight. The likelihood of infections for both the mother and baby increases in cases of maternal anemia.
Certain inherited forms of anemia, like sickle cell anemia, may result in complications that threaten life. A rapid loss of large amounts of blood leads to serious anemia and can be deadly.
Besides its immediate health impacts, anemia can impede brain development and fine motor skills in children, while increasing the likelihood of stroke, cardiovascular disease, dementia, and other chronic conditions in older adults.
Understanding the underlying causes of anaemia
The fact that anemia has numerous root causes complicates efforts to bring about a considerable reduction in its global prevalence. The most prevalent cause is a lack of iron in the diet. Additionally, other significant contributors to anemia are blood disorders such as sickle cell disease and thalassemias, infectious diseases like malaria and hookworm, gynecologic and obstetric conditions, inflammation, and chronic diseases.
In women of childbearing age, anemia is frequently linked to the dual factors of menstrual blood loss and the heightened blood requirements of pregnancy for fetal development. The anemia burden in this group is likely due to a lack of menstrual education, insufficient options for managing menstrual problems, and unmet family planning needs. They are also significant motivators for transgender men and nonbinary individuals who menstruate.
As their bodies develop, young children’s need for iron rises, and in this demographic, malnutrition is a frequent contributor to anemia.
Preventative strategies
While it may not be possible to prevent many kinds of anemia, however consuming a nutritious diet could avert iron deficiency anemia and vitamin deficiency anemias. A healthy diet includes foods that are rich in iron such as lentils, beans, cereals fortified with iron, dark leafy greens, and dried fruits.
Folate is one nutrient that along with its synthetic variant folic acid, is present in fruits and their juices, dark green leafy vegetables, green peas, kidney beans, peanuts, and fortified grain products like bread, cereal, pasta, and rice.
Meat, dairy items, and fortified cereals and soy are examples of foods abundant in vitamin B-12. Vitamin C helps in the absorption of iron by the body. Citrus fruits and juices, peppers, broccoli, tomatoes, melons, and strawberries are all foods high in vitamin C.
Beyond this a regular CBC checkup, especially after the age of 40 is recommended. If there is low hemoglobin, seeking the advise of an expert is a good idea as anemia can be caused due to many other causes other then nutritional, some of which could be bone marrow disorder cancers and such dreadful diseases. Early diagnosis of these may be the key to successful management. With this we conclude that one should not ignore the symptoms of anemia and get their cbc done atleast once a year.
