Decreased iron levels in the body negatively affect many life processes: Metabolism and brain functions are disrupted, physical health, performance and sexual life are damaged. Anastasia Zubritskaya, obstetrician-gynecologist, ultrasound diagnostician and nutritionist at the National Medical Clinical Center named after socialbites.ca, told socialbites.ca. Pirogova is an expert at Solgar.
“The main causes of depletion of iron reserves in the body include malnutrition, lack of iron-rich foods in the diet, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and difficulties in the absorption of iron by the body associated with chronic diseases. “In women, heavy menstrual bleeding, pregnancy, active growth of the child and also old age can also occur,” he said.
According to the doctor, more than a third of all his patients of childbearing age come with complaints of heavy menstrual bleeding or with a predetermined diagnosis of iron deficiency anemia based on a general blood test. According to ferritin, transferrin and serum iron, one in every two people has latent iron deficiency. As a rule, women come to find out the cause of this condition on the advice of a therapist or, if we are talking about latent iron deficiency, on the advice of a beautician-trichologist with hair loss. Sometimes iron deficiency is discovered incidentally during periodic preventive examinations or pre-pregnancy preparation. As a rule, such patients are immediately noticeable: pale, exhausted, confused, depressed and very tired.
Iron deficiency is less common among men, but special attention should be paid to the content of this mineral in the body of blood donors and vegetarians.
“Many people can live in a state of preanemia for years and not suspect it. Thus, if there is iron deficiency, the body first replenishes it from reserves in the liver, which does not affect the state of health and hemoglobin levels in any way. Signs of latent iron deficiency (latent anemia) are detected by chance after a blood test for ferritin However, when these iron reserves are depleted, unpleasant symptoms will appear: fatigue, unexplained weakness, dizziness, headache, pale skin and mucous membranes, cracks at the corners of the mouth, brittle nails, hair, restless leg syndrome. The doctor explained.
A simple way to prevent iron deficiency is to adjust your diet. Foods contain two types of iron: heme is found in meat and non-heme is found in plant foods. The latter is less easily absorbed by the body, in addition, the assimilation process is also affected by simultaneously consumed food and drinks.
Another way to correct iron deficiency conditions is to take medications in the common form of ferrous sulfate, for example.
“I often receive complaints about the side effects of taking traditional types of medications (stool problems, nausea, bloating). In such cases, I often direct patients to the mild organic form of iron that is easily absorbed (chelated). The therapy then takes place with minimal side effects and the best clinical outcome,” added Zubritskaya.
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