Diet And Measures To Increase Haemoglobin In Blood

What should be the food habits for generating more haemoglobin in the blood. Which foods help to increase the hb content ?

To increase the levels of hemoglobin in your blood, you mainly need to increase your consumption of iron. Hemoglobin is basically a protein in the blood that contains iron – when iron combines with certain proteins in the blood, hemoglobin is formed. Low hemoglobin levels in the blood can cause several problems including weakness, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating, and can sometimes lead to an increased strain on the heart.

How to Increase Haemoglobin Concentration In blood?

It is important that you find out exactly why your hemoglobin levels are low – anemia, which is the name usually given to any condition involving low hemoglobin levels, is of many different types, with many different causes. Your body may be unable to absorb iron properly, the bone marrow may be unable to produce hemoglobin in spite of adequate iron consumption, there may be chronic blood loss due to a bleeding ulcer, and so on. If there is some underlying problem that is causing this condition, then it needs to be addressed. Improving your diet will certainly help, but if there is some other cause then dietary measures may not be enough.

Meat is a good source of iron, but in general it is not a good idea to eat too much red meat, especially fatty meat. If you are eating red meat, ensure that it is lean. Eggs are also a good source of iron, and you can eat them regularly, as long as you have no other health problems. If you do have some health problems, you may need to avoid eating the yolks – eat only the white of the egg. Certain sea food, such as oyster, shrimp, and sardine, is also high in iron, besides offering several other health benefits.

As far as plant sources of food go, most legumes are high in iron, and you should eat more of these. Green leafy vegetables are also high in iron, but this iron is not always available to the body. For example, spinach used to be widely promoted as an excellent source of iron, but it is now known that although it contains a lot of iron, the body is not able to absorb this iron, making it mostly useless.

You can also increase your intake of vitamin C, which most citrus fruits are high in vitamin c, as vitamin C helps the body to absorb iron much better. In addition, you could take iron supplements if necessary, but this is something you should ask your doctor about first.

Hemoglobin

Blood hemoglobin can be described as an iron that contains metalloprotein, a substance that is required for transporting oxygen in the red blood cells. It is absolutely vital for the proper functioning of the human body. Hemoglobin deficiency could lead to several health problems in a person. The required levels of hemoglobin in people are:

• Men: 13.8 g/dl to 18.2 g/dl
• Women: 12.2 g/dl to 15 g/dl
• Children: 11 g/dl to 16 g/dl
• Pregnant women: 11 g/dl to 12 g/dl

Hemoglobin deficiency refers to a condition in which the level of hemoglobin that is present in a person’s blood is way below what is required by the body to function in the normal way. This occurrence is also known as iron deficiency anemia, since it is the lack of iron that causes anemia, which in turn leads to a low level of hemoglobin in the blood. Hemoglobin deficiency is generally characterized by signs such as shortness of breath and anemia. In most cases anemia and hemoglobin deficiency are short term problems that can be controlled by following a specific diet that is rich in iron. Some people may also be advised to take iron supplements for a short period of time, to increase hemoglobin levels in their blood. However, in some rare instances, hemoglobin deficiency could become a chronic problem, which has life threatening consequences on a person. Therefore even though hemoglobin deficiency is fairly harmless, it is important to have a doctor conduct a check up, identify the exact cause of the deficiency and then treat the condition accordingly.

Causes of hemoglobin deficiency

There could be numerous factors that lead to the lack of dietary iron as well as hemoglobin deficiency in a person. Research indicates that people suffering from a certain condition are more prone to anemia and hemoglobin deficiency than others. For example, people who are suffering from gastrointestinal problems may not have the ability to absorb iron from the food they eat. This could cause the hemoglobin in the body to reduce drastically. Given below are some of the conditions that could result in hemoglobin deficiency:

• Uterine fibroids
• Sickle cell anemia
• Colon polyps
• Peptic ulcer bleeding
• Kidney cancer
• Bleeding during childbirth
• Bladder cancer
• Loss of blood due to an injury
• Hiatal hernia bleeding
• Gastrointestinal bleeding
• Colorectal cancer
• Heavy menstrual periods on a regular basis

Taking certain medication could also interfere with the body’s ability to absorb iron properly from food. It has been seen that growing children, teenagers and women who are pregnant or are lactating usually have higher production of red blood cells. However, due to the rise in the levels of red blood cells, the requirement of iron in the body also increases. Therefore, if the body does not receive a boost in the intake of iron, in the form of an iron supplement or so, then the person could suffer from hemoglobin deficiency. Children or even adults who consume a diet that is low in iron may also suffer from mild cases of hemoglobin deficiency.

Symptoms of hemoglobin deficiency

The symptoms of hemoglobin deficiency can vary from one person to another, based on the severity of the condition. The most common symptoms of low hemoglobin levels in a person are:

• Paleness
• Weakness
• Dizziness
• Chest pain
• Lack of focus and concentration
• Fatigue
• Breathing difficulties
• Brittle nails
• Palpitations in the chest
• General Malaise
• Depression
• Hands and feet that are constantly cold

Hemoglobin deficiency is not a very serious problem in adults, if it is treated and controlled at the right time. However, hemoglobin deficiency in infants, toddlers and growing children could lead to improper neurological development, poor performance in studies or sports, behavioral disturbance and higher chances of lead poisoning. Therefore, to avoid such conditions and situation, it is important for every parent to ensure that their children get an adequate intake of iron as well as all the other essential nutrients.

How to increase hemoglobin in the blood?

Fortunately, there are several ways and methods on how to increase hemoglobin levels in the body naturally. The first step recommended by almost every doctor for increasing hemoglobin in the blood is to make a few dietary changes and include a higher quantity of those foods that are high in iron. Hence, given below are the different food groups as well as the food items from each group that should be consumed regularly, in order to combat hemoglobin deficiency:

• Vegetables: Spinach, broccoli, cabbage, collards, potatoes and other green leafy vegetables
• Fruits: Watermelons, apples, oranges, dried apricots, avocados, raisins and prunes
• Beans & peas: Soybean (and other soy products), kidney beans, black beans, lima beans, pinto beans, green peas and black eyed peas
• Cereals: Rice, whole grain bread, whole wheat pasta and iron enriched cereals
• Seafood: Anchovies, sardines, clams and oysters
• Poultry: Chicken, duck, turkey, chicken liver and so on.
• Red meat: Beef, lamb, pork and red meat organs

Since plant based sources of food contain lower levels of iron, as compared to iron based sources of food, people who follow vegetarian or vegan diets may need to pay more attention to increasing their iron intake. Fortunately, there are several brands of iron supplements that can help a person increase iron levels. For better absorption of iron, it is generally recommended that the iron tablets be taken on an empty stomach, along with a glass of orange juice. For younger children, who cannot take supplements in the form of a pill, there are iron tonics too. However, it is important to check with a doctor, before taking any amount of iron supplements. This is because an overdose of iron can lead to constipation.

In case a person shows no improvement after making the required dietary changes and adding a regular iron supplement, then other treatment options may need to be considered. In most cases, treating the underlying cause of the hemoglobin deficiency generally brings about an improvement. If that does not seem to work too, then a blood transfusion may be the only option.