Anemia and low levels of hemoglobin in the blood - this condition is familiar to many modern people. Its consequence becomes weakness, disruption of many organs. After all, hemoglobin is responsible for the transfer of oxygen to tissues. This is the main component of blood, due to which it has a red color and performs its functions.
The main trace element that ensures the production of hemoglobin is iron. It is because of its lack that anemia most often occurs. In this condition, hemoglobin-enhancing drugs are prescribed. But you can simply adjust the diet by regularly including iron-containing products in it.
Hemoglobin level
Human health depends on how cells are provided with oxygen. And it is transferred with the help of hemoglobin - a component of red blood cells. It is he who performs the most important task of providing all the cells of the body with oxygen. About 10 grams of hemoglobin is lost daily, so it is so important to constantly replenish its amount. It decreases strongly in conditions accompanied by blood loss. These are various injuries, operations, hemorrhoids and even menstruation in women. In this case, you must follow a special diet to increase hemoglobin. But iron-containing products for pregnant women are especially important, because at this time the need for this pigment increases.
In addition, its level often decreases in childhood and adolescence due to the rapid growth of the body, as well as in older people due to a slowdown in metabolic processes. There are certain norms for the content of this substance in the blood. In women, hemoglobin should not be lower than 120 g / l, and in men - not lower than 130 g / l.
The role of iron
For normal blood formation processes, various trace elements are necessary. But the most important is iron, which is involved in the formation of hemoglobin. Most often, it is due to the lack of this microelement that anemia occurs. After all, a hemoglobin molecule consists of two parts: heme (iron) and globin (protein component). With a low iron content in the blood, hemoglobin molecules cannot form, therefore, little oxygen enters the cells.
Iron can not accumulate in large quantities, so it is very important that it is ingested daily. But for this it is necessary not only to consume iron-containing products, but also to do it correctly. It is important to know how much of this trace element is necessary for health. An adult needs from 10 mg for men to 18 mg for women. The need for it increases during pregnancy, during severe illness, or after large blood loss.
How to understand that hemoglobin level is low
Lack of iron greatly affects the general state of human health. In addition, the supply of tissues with oxygen decreases, the functioning of internal organs and digestion deteriorate. After all, iron is part of many enzymes and is involved in some other vital processes. There are certain symptoms that will help to understand that the body lacks this vital trace element and its hemoglobin level is lowered:
- severe weakness and fatigue;
- hair loss, brittle nails;
- the skin becomes pale, dry, cracks appear in the corners of the mouth;
- dizziness;
- shortness of breath and tachycardia;
- sleep disturbance;
- digestion problems;
- frequent colds.
How to increase hemoglobin
If the tests confirm that its blood level is low, special preparations containing iron are most often prescribed. They must be taken in critical cases, when hemoglobin in the blood drops below 100 g / l. And with a slight decrease in it, you can cope with the problem by including iron-containing food products in the diet. But this is also necessary during the treatment of severe anemia, as well as for its prevention.
The use of such products will help to avoid a strong decrease in hemoglobin, and also eliminate the need to buy expensive iron-containing drugs. In addition, such treatment will not have side effects, which is often the case with drugs.
When choosing iron-containing products for anemia, you need to consider that the iron in them is different. There are heme, which is better and more fully absorbed, as well as non-heme. The second option is most often found in products of plant origin, so iron from them is absorbed worse. In addition, the body can absorb no more than 2 g of iron per day. Therefore, with a strong decrease in hemoglobin levels, only by changing the diet can not solve the problem.
In addition, when drawing up the diet, the patient's age and the reason for the decrease in hemoglobin must be taken into account. It is especially important to choose the right iron-containing products to increase hemoglobin for pregnant women. They need to consider that some of them can harm the baby. Therefore, do not eat a large amount of liver and offal. It is necessary to compensate for the lack of iron with the help of vegetables, fruits, berries, nuts.
Best Iron-Free Products for Anemia: A List
It is believed that to raise hemoglobin, it is necessary to eat meat and liver of animals. But iron is not only found in animal products. People who constantly eat meat often suffer from anemia.
The list of iron-containing products is quite large. And although not all of them are able to meet the needs of the body, it is desirable to include them in the diet. But there are a few foods that have the most iron content. It is they who, with regular use, are able to raise the level of hemoglobin. They contain more than 10 mg of iron per 100 grams. These are such products:
- pork liver;
- chicken liver;
- dried porcini mushrooms;
- brewer's yeast;
- sea kale;
- cocoa;
- pumpkin seeds;
- lentils
- sesame seeds;
- pistachios;
- spinach;
- wheat bran.
Iron-containing animal products
They contain heme iron, which is better absorbed by the body. Between 15% and 35% of this trace element is absorbed from animal products. That is why they are considered the best for raising hemoglobin.
Most iron in meat and offal. It is believed that the darker it is, the better it affects the level of hemoglobin. Such iron-containing products are useful for anemia:
- veal, beef;
- chicken and turkey;
- lean pork;
- pork and chicken liver;
- heart, tongue;
- fish, especially sardine and tuna;
- seafood - shrimp, oysters, caviar.
Vegetables and fruits
Plant foods also have a high iron content. And although it is absorbed from them worse, they still need to be constantly included in the diet. Beetroot improves hemoglobin levels best. Potatoes, carrots, cabbage, zucchini and tomatoes are also useful. Be sure to include greens in the diet: spinach, dill, parsley.
Of the fruits, berries of red and black color are most valued: cranberries, blueberries, black currants, plums, cherries, rosehips. A lot of iron in pomegranates, apples, peaches, figs, grapes, quinces, watermelons. They can be consumed fresh, in desserts, and for the winter you need to freeze.
Cereals, seeds and nuts
Those looking for the best iron-containing foods for anemia should not ignore nuts and seeds. Pistachios and peanuts are especially useful in this regard. A sufficient amount of iron also contains hazelnuts and walnuts. It is useful for anemia to use pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, as well as halva. A lot of iron - 14 g - is found in sesame seeds.
Various cereals are also recommended. Best of all, untreated. For example, white wheat flour is poor in any trace element. After all, all useful substances remain in bran, which contain almost 20 g of iron. Buckwheat, oatmeal, and millet are useful for raising hemoglobin.
But legumes are especially valuable in this regard. Despite the fact that less than 10% of iron is digested, these products contain it in large quantities, and in addition, many other useful trace elements. Lentils, peas, beans - these are the products that must be consumed with anemia.
Folk recipes
Iron-containing products are not always effective for increasing hemoglobin in an adult. After all, they can be poorly absorbed. And not all useful products are available to everyone. But in folk medicine, there are several recipes that include herbs, vegetables, and fruits. They are mixed in certain proportions and used as a medicine. This helps make up for the lack of iron in the body:
- Mix walnuts, dried apricots, prunes and raisins in equal amounts. Twist in a meat grinder and add a little honey. Consume 6 teaspoons daily.
- Drinking 2 cups of freshly squeezed carrot juice daily is recommended.
- Squeeze a little juice from grated beets, mix in equal proportions with honey. Take 2 tablespoons 3 times a day.
- A mixture of carrot, beet, apple and pomegranate juices increases hemoglobin levels well. They need to take 100 g, add there 50 g of honey. Drink 2-3 sips 3 times a day.
- A decoction of St. John's wort, white cassava and blackberry leaves is useful. He is drunk a tablespoon three times a day.
How to improve iron absorption
Not always iron-containing products for raising hemoglobin help. It is not enough just to include them in the diet, you need to make sure that the iron from them is normally absorbed by the body.
Some other trace elements help this. First of all, it is vitamin C. Therefore, during the treatment of anemia, it is recommended to consume more acidic vegetables and fruits: oranges, blackcurrants, sauerkraut, tomatoes, spinach. Instead of tea, you need to drink a rosehip broth. In addition, the production of hemoglobin depends on the presence in the body of a sufficient amount of vitamin B12, copper, manganese, zinc, folic acid. Therefore, you must also include in the diet bananas, buckwheat, pears, honey.
Calcium interferes with the absorption of iron. Therefore, iron-containing products are recommended to be consumed separately from milk. In addition, proteins are digested worse and iron is absorbed from them in the presence of cereals. But most of all, the normal formation of hemoglobin coffee and strong tea interfere with the substances contained in them. There are also common foods that interfere with the production of hemoglobin - these are eggs, pasta and wheat bread. It is also desirable to exclude them from the diet during the treatment of anemia.
Dish recipes
Dietary nutrition should be not only healthy, but also tasty. So with anemia from the necessary products you can make unusual dishes. It is especially important to prepare them correctly for children and sick people who have no appetite. And in old age, you need to pay more attention to chopped, cooked dishes, so that it is easier to chew and assimilate. There are different recipes with iron-containing products, but it is better to use those where there are several.
- Grate beets, carrots, add pitted raisins, walnuts. Season the salad with olive oil.
- Buckwheat and beef meatballs are useful. You need to cook buckwheat, mix with ground beef. Stew meatballs with vegetables: pepper, onions, pumpkin.
- Homemade pate can be made from chicken liver. To do this, stew it until soft with carrots and onions. When cool, add garlic, walnuts, herbs. Grind everything in a blender.
- A healthy and satisfying salad can be made with chicken breast. In addition to it, tomatoes, apples, sweet peppers, orange and lettuce are added.
If you constantly consume products containing iron, you can prevent a decrease in hemoglobin.