One of the most common disorders of the blood, and also the most common disease is anemia. The main reason for this is the lack of iron, and the disease is most prevalent in women between 20 and 50 years.
What is the function of iron in the body?
Erythrocytes are red blood cells without the core, but in their structure they have a pigment protein called hemoglobin, which is rich in iron and is responsible for the transfer of oxygen to the cells and removing carbon dioxide from the cells.
Medical findings of anemic individuals with low iron have values below 8, the hemoglobin is also low, which results in low hematocrit values.
What is anemia and what are its symptoms?
The person who is anemic mainly looks pale, tired, apathetic in mood, may have frequent headaches, shortness of breath, tachycardia, fatigue, dizziness, early language and other infections caused by poor absorption of minerals and other nutritional elements. Nails can be thin and brittle hair to fall more than usual, and you can see the lack of appetite.
There are two types of anemia. The most common type of anemia is the one that occurs due to lack of iron in the diet or because of increased blood loss (bleeding, hemorrhoids), and there may be a greater need for iron during pregnancy or breastfeeding, or if the person is actively involved in sports. Another type of anemia is caused by a lack of vitamin B12 (which stimulates the process of formation of red blood cells), lack of folic acid (which together with vitamin C and iron complete their maturation of red blood cells).
How to eat to prevent anemia?
First you need to increase your intake of red meat, fish, eggs, eat green vegetables, beans, peas, whole grains, black honey that is rich in iron, copper – rich foods because it helps in the absorption of iron – cheese, seafood, apricots, cherries, figs, eggs.
It is not recommended to drink tea with a meal, coffee and wine, because their tannins inhibit the absorption of iron. With a meal of meat and vegetables it is best to drink lemonade, or eat acidic fruits, because vitamin C helps in extracting iron from food and facilitates its absorption in the intestine. It is advisable to eat spinach, fresh as a salad or lightly cooked.
Foods that are high in iron, should be eaten in combination with bread, pasta, sugar and rice, because they are rich in carbohydrates, contain phytates that impede digestion, thereby preventing iron to reach the right place.
Women need about 15 mg of iron per day, and nursing mothers and pregnant women about 25 mg. With abundantly bleeding in the days of the menstrual cycle, a woman can lose 12 – 14 mg of iron, and it is one of the moments when you must be careful you’re your diet is high quality and rich in iron.
