Weight loss, fatigue, low hemoglobin are all the main symptoms of anemia. The disease today is widespread among the population, occurs in both adults and children.
Most often, the cause of anemia is some other ailment that contributes to the occurrence of iron deficiency in the blood. At the first symptoms, you need to urgently seek help from specialists. Treatment of anemia with folk remedies also gives good results, but only if it is supported by drug therapy.
We will talk about what contributes to the onset of the disease and what methods can increase hemoglobin at home, in our article.
What symptoms may indicate the development of anemia
In patients with iron deficiency in the body, as a rule, it is noted: blanching of the skin, dark (sometimes bluish) circles under the eyes, dull hair, thinning of the nail plates, pale lips and gums.
If you have several of these symptoms, urgently go for a consultation with your doctor. He will direct you to an examination that allows you to establish the degree of anemia and the possible causes of its occurrence.
When making a diagnosis, doctors use the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10). The code for anemia in this list is D 50. It can be supplemented by the numbers 0, 1, 8, 9. They indicate the type of disease and factors contributing to its development.
In addition to the above symptoms, the following signs of anemia should alert you:
- persistent weakness;
- frequent headaches;
- excessive drowsiness;
- noise in ears;
- dizziness;
- frequent nausea
- stitching pains in the chest area;
- vision problems;
- lethargy;
- shortness of breath with minor exertion;
- fainting.
Some patients note a desire to eat chalk, salt, lime. If you notice such oddities behind you, it is possible that your hemoglobin level has decreased. In such cases, an appropriate examination should be performed.
If you find the diagnosis of "anemia" in your medical record (ICD-10 code - D 50), don't be upset. This ailment responds well to treatment, but only if the factors contributing to its occurrence are identified.
Causes of Anemia
Among all the causes of anemia, the most common are:
- large blood loss;
- a malfunction of the bone marrow (responsible for the allocation of red blood cells);
- deficiency of essential trace elements;
- chronic diseases;
- infectious processes in the body;
- pregnancy period;
- the presence of helminths in the body;
- poor nutrition (for example, following a strict diet).
Most often, anemia is diagnosed after surgery and blood loss due to injuries. Internal bleeding can also contribute to the development of anemia. In this case, the treatment of anemia with folk remedies will be ineffective, since first you need to eliminate the underlying ailment.
How is anemia treated?
Therapeutic actions for anemia are aimed at eliminating the causes of its development. First of all, the corresponding diseases are eliminated, measures are taken to stop the blood loss.
If a lack of red bodies in the blood is provoked by a banal lack of vitamins, therapy should be started with nutritional adjustments. The patient is recommended to follow a frequent meal (5-6 times a day). At the same time, nutrition should be balanced.
Food should be enriched with a sufficient amount of vitamins, iron-containing products, proteins. When treating the most common variety of anemia (arising from an iron deficiency in the body), a diet is prescribed. With anemia, it is necessary to eat high-calorie foods, more often to be in the fresh air and relax more.
What foods should be in the patient's diet
A properly designed diet is the key to a quick recovery. It should include whole milk, butter, natural cream. Modern medicine recommends focusing on the use of corn and wheat porridge.
Anemia foods should be high in protein. All food of animal origin meets this requirement. This includes all types of meat, fish, offal, chicken eggs, all seafood and milk.
Of particular value for patients with anemia are yellow and orange fruits. Namely:
- apricots
- dried apricots;
- persimmon;
- apples
- pears
- sea buckthorn;
- pepper (yellow varieties);
- pumpkin;
- citrus;
- exotic fruits (mango, papaya).
Treatment of anemia with folk remedies involves the use of a large amount of herbs (celery, dill, parsley, onions), zucchini, squash, raisins, cucumbers, walnuts, carrots, potatoes. Cranberries, currants, viburnum, cherries have a positive effect on hemoglobin. Also on this list is dark honey . It contains a large amount of iron and proteins.
Juices
The nutrition of the patient with anemia includes a large number of natural juices. With anemia, they are prescribed in large quantities.
The first place in terms of effectiveness is pomegranate juice. You need to drink it very carefully, since a concentrated drink negatively affects the stomach. For this reason, it should be diluted with warm water. If taking pomegranate concentrate does not cause you any unpleasant symptoms, drink it half a glass before each meal.
Beetroot juice helps speed up the formation of red blood cells. Its daily dose is 0.5 cups. This volume should be divided into several meals. The course of treatment with such a “medicine” is about 4 weeks. However, this period can be extended.
Good results help achieve the use of a mixture of juices of beets, carrots and radishes. Potato juice also helps to increase hemoglobin. It should be drunk 200 ml three times a day. All drinks are recommended to be consumed 30-40 minutes before a meal.
About the benefits of buckwheat
Buckwheat is considered one of the most affordable and effective methods of combating anemia. It contains a huge amount of iron, ascorbic and folic acid. These trace elements contribute to the rapid renewal of the blood and improve the absorption of vitamins by the body.
The use of buckwheat with anemia allows you to quickly normalize skin color and improve the well-being of the patient. A real storehouse of vitamins is porridge from buckwheat and kefir.
To prepare such a dish, pour the cereal with warm kefir and leave it overnight in the refrigerator. By morning, porridge will absorb liquid and will be ready for use. You can add a spoonful of honey to the finished dish.
Add walnuts to your food
Walnuts with anemia are recommended very often. They are rich in a large number of minerals, enriched with vitamins A, E, F, B2 and thiamine. In addition, their kernels differ in the content of a large amount of protein, therefore, with anemia, the use of nuts is very important.
Add nuts to cereals and vegetable salads. This will help you quickly deal with anemia. However, remember that this product can cause allergies. It is also contraindicated for people with skin diseases and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
Do not forget about the beneficial properties of the liver
From the mouths of traditional medicine connoisseurs, one can often hear that in a record time pork and beef blood, raw meat helps to increase hemoglobin. Follow these tips is not worth it. They can and will help increase the number of blood cells in the blood, but they will additionally enrich your body with various parasites.
Anemia can be overcome by safer methods. These include the use of pork and beef liver. In case of anemia, special recipes for the preparation of these products should be used.
The liver should not be subjected to prolonged processing. It is easy enough to fry the slices on both sides and simmer them with onions over low heat for about 5-7 minutes. As a result, you will get a safe and very useful product.
Drink milk with garlic
If you have low blood pressure due to anemia, this recipe will be very useful for you. It is also suitable for combating drowsiness, general weakness and excessive fatigue.
Take 250 ml of milk and squeeze 3 cloves of garlic into it. Bring the mixture to a boil and take 30 ml three times a day. Many may not like such a drink, but it gives good results.
Herbal medicine for anemia
Treatment of anemia with folk remedies has repeatedly proved its effectiveness. In the list of such recipes, one of the first places is herbal medicine. Herbal preparations can treat anemia of varying degrees and etiology.
For therapeutic purposes, you can use one of the following recipes:
- Mix in equal proportions rose hips, chamomile flowers, celandine, nettle leaves, mint and alfalfa. Grind all the ingredients and mix in one collection. Next, 3 tablespoons of the resulting composition pour 2.5 cups of boiling water. Let the collection brew for about 2 hours. Strain the broth and take it for one day. The course of treatment is 3-4 months.
- Aloe plant leaves will help establish the process of blood formation and improve the condition of the whole organism. They need to grind and pour red wine. The medicine is infused for 10 hours, after which 3 tablespoons are taken before each meal.
- Mix in equal parts (about 2 handfuls) hawthorn, peppermint and strawberry leaves. Add 20 grams of dandelion rhizomes, chicory roots, horsetail, meadow clover, elecampane, rose hips, St. John's wort and nettle leaves to the mixture. In 15 grams of the collection, pour 2 cups of boiling water and leave for half an hour. Filter the collection and drink instead of tea after each meal.
Important! Herbal medicine also has some contraindications. Before starting treatment, consult your doctor. What herbs to drink with anemia in your case, can only be said by a specialist.
And now a little about the features of nutrition.
Features of the diet for anemia
As mentioned earlier, nutrition with anemia should be very high in calories. The nutritional value of dishes is maintained at a high level.
Diet for anemia implies the following scheme:
- daily protein intake - about 120 grams;
- the daily rate of fat is 40 grams;
- carbohydrates - 450 grams.
The total calorie content of all the dishes that you eat per day should be at least 3000-2500 kcal.
Remember that the body absorbs iron better with sufficient intake of vitamin C. Ascorbic acid should be one of the main components of your diet.
An example of a balanced menu with anemia
If you do not know what dishes to diversify your diet, use this example of a weekly menu. It will help you understand which foods are most beneficial for anemia.
Day 1:
- breakfast: millet porridge and fruits, a rosehip broth;
- lunch: vinaigrette;
- lunch: borsch with sour cream, pork steak, cabbage salad;
- afternoon snack: juice with biscuit cookies;
- dinner: potatoes with meat, black tea with lemon.
Day 2:
- breakfast: sandwich with liver pate, boiled egg, yogurt;
- lunch: baked apple;
- lunch: cabbage soup, boiled rice, chicken, compote;
- afternoon snack: pomegranate juice;
- dinner: boiled or aspic fish, potatoes, tea.
Day 3:
- breakfast: oatmeal with fruit, milk;
- lunch: banana;
- lunch: chicken broth soup, vegetable stew, meat, apple juice;
- afternoon snack: cottage cheese with sour cream;
- dinner: coleslaw, meatballs, tea with lemon.
Day 4:
- breakfast: cheesecakes, honey, compote;
- lunch: fresh berries;
- lunch: pickle, fish and potatoes, natural jelly;
- afternoon snack: cookies, apple juice;
- dinner: pasta with grated cheese, tea with lemon.
Day 5:
- breakfast: cottage cheese casserole, berries, juice;
- lunch: apple jelly;
- lunch: fish soup, liver with vegetables, compote;
- afternoon snack: biscuit with fruit;
- dinner: cabbage salad, meatballs, tea.
Day 6:
- breakfast: buckwheat, sausage, tea;
- lunch: walnuts;
- lunch: meat soup with rice, liver with vegetables, prunes;
- afternoon snack: apple or pear;
- dinner: chicken cutlet, beetroot salad, tea.
Day 7:
- breakfast: scrambled eggs, tomatoes, cranberry drink;
- lunch: fruit salad;
- lunch: pea soup, pasta with meat, fruit juice;
- afternoon snack: cottage cheese with the addition of fruit;
- dinner: fish pie, vegetable salad, rosehip broth.
Bite small meals between meals. For these purposes, citrus fruits, fruits and fresh juices are suitable.
conclusions
Anemia is a rather unpleasant ailment, but it is easily eliminated. To do this, you need to turn to specialists in time and pay attention to your diet. Do not rely only on the experience of friends and acquaintances. Enough diseases can cause anemia. Alternative recipes may not help you if you do not supplement them with adequate medication.