9 Ways to Prevent Anemia

Anemia is a medical condition in which healthy red blood cells dip below normal limits. Anemia prevents your body from carrying adequate oxygen to your tissues and can make you feel weak and tired. There are many different kinds of anemia, including iron-deficiency anemia or sickle cell anemia that require different types of treatment. Anyone can get anemia, though women, strict vegans, people with poor diets, and people with chronic diseases are at a higher risk. Depending on the type of anemia, you can prevent and may even be able to cure anemia through diet or by taking supplements.

1. Be aware of your risk
Iron and vitamin deficiency anemia are two of the most common forms of anemia and are caused by either a shortage of iron or Vitamin B12 and folate in your body. Almost any person can get iron or vitamin deficiency anemia, so being aware of your risk can help you prevent it. The following conditions may cause a shortage of iron, vitamin B12, or folate and lead to anemia:

• Vegans who don't eat animal products or people with a poor diet
• Excessive blood loss from heavy menstrual bleeding, surgery, or other trauma
• A gastric ulcer
• Cancer, especially intestinal cancer
• Polyps or other diseases, such as or Crohn’s or celiac disease, of the digestive tract
• Prolonged use of aspirins or NSAIDS
• Pregnancy
• Insufficient iron, vitamin B12, or folate consumption in your diet

2. Identify the symptoms of anemia

  The signs of anemia don't show up immediately, or they may be mild. Be aware of these symptoms:

• Fatigue
• Weakness
• Dizziness
• Headache
• Numbness or coldness in your hands and feet
• Low body temperature
• Pale skin
• Rapid or irregular heartbeat
• Shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Irritability

3. Ingest iron supplements

  To ensure that you're getting sufficient iron, consider taking over the counter iron supplements. You can take this as a single supplement or part of a multivitamin, which may lessen your risk for developing anemia.

• You need anywhere from 8-18 mg of iron per day to keep your iron at normal levels. Consider taking slightly more if you are anemic or concerned about developing it.
• Women require more (up to 15-18 mg), because of menstruation. Pregnant women need at least 27 mg and lactating women 9-10 mg.
• You can get iron supplements at most pharmacies and health food stores.

 

4. Eat a diet rich in iron

  Make sure that you get enough iron through nutritious, whole foods. Eating iron-rich foods can help prevent anemia.

• Meats and shellfish are an excellent source of iron. Red meats, such as lean beef or beef liver and shellfish, such as clams, oysters and shrimp are excellent choices.
• Beans and legumes, such as lentils and green peas are high in iron.
• Leafy greens, such as spinach, kale, and collard greens contain high amounts of iron.
• Consider eating iron-fortified cereals for breakfast or a snack as a way to get more iron in your diet.
• All of the iron-rich animal products also contain Vitamin B12, which can also help prevent anemia.

5. Increase your Vitamin C and folate intake

  The presence of vitamin C and folate can help the body absorb iron more efficiently. Incorporating more foods containing Vitamin C and folate or taking a supplement for these nutrients can help minimize your risk for anemia.

• Foods such as peppers, kale, broccoli, citrus fruits, strawberries, pineapple, and spinach contain Vitamin C.
• You can get folate through many of the same foods including citrus fruits and dark, leafy greens. You can consume additional folate through bananas, fortified breads and cereals, and legumes.
• Consider taking Vitamin C and folate supplements or a multivitamin to help you get enough of these nutrients. Getting them through whole foods is preferable, but in some cases this is not possible.

6. Delay cow’s milk feeding for infants; limit it for toddlers 

 The Committee on Nutrition of the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents delay using cow’s milk as a beverage until a baby is at least one year of age. There are two iron-related reasons for this: cow’s milk is low in iron, and cow’s milk can irritate the intestinal lining, causing bleeding and the loss of iron. This is a tiny amount of blood loss, but over a long period of time it can be significant. The combination of poor iron intake and increased iron loss sets a baby up for iron deficiency anemia, and excessive milk consumption is a common cause of iron deficiency anemia in toddlers. An eighteen-month-old who consumes forty ounces of milk a day may be plump, but is probably very pale. Unless advised otherwise by your baby’s doctor, limit your toddler’s cow milk intake to no more than 24 ounces a day. 

 

7. Combine foods wisely

  Eating a food rich in vitamin C along with a good iron source will help your body use the iron. Here are some classic examples:

-spaghetti with meat and tomato sauce
-meat and potatoes
-chicken fajitas with broccoli, sweet pepper, and tomatoes
-hamburger and coleslaw
-nitrate-free hot dogs and orange juice
-fruit, iron-fortified cereal, and raisins
-fresh fruit with raisins

8. Try prune juice as a regular beverage

  Prune juice is one of the few juices that is high in iron (3 milligrams of iron per cup). The process involved in making prune juice retains more of the fruit’s original nutrients than the juicing of other fruits.

NUTRITIP Don’t Skin the Iron Leave the skin on the potatoes when making homemade fries. This way you’ll get more nutrition into a french-fry-loving picky eater. The potato skin is rich in nutrients and contains five times the amount of iron as the whole rest of the potato. Compliment those restaurants who have the nutritional wisdom to leave the skins on the fries. And, don’t forget to eat the skin on your baked potato.

9. Cook in iron pots

  The acid in foods seems to pull some of the iron out of the cast-iron pots. Simmering acidic foods, such as tomato sauce, in an iron pot can increase the iron content of the brew more than ten-fold. Cooking foods containing other acids, such as vinegar, red wine, lemon or lime juice, in an iron pot can also increase the iron content of the final mixture.