The bloodstream is crucial to the body. The blood travels around the body, delivering oxygen to the various areas of the body. The actual delivery is completed by the red blood cells that are located within the blood. People with anemia are not transferring enough oxygen to the outer parts of the body. There are several different types of anemia. Sometimes red blood cells stop being produced. Sometimes they are deficient in some way and don’t carry oxygen. Anemia can also range from milk to moderate in severity. Symptoms of anemia are pretty common. The lack of oxygen often shows itself in fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath, dizziness and headaches. Some people get irregular heartbeats, have their skin turn yellow or go pale, suffer from chest pain or have cold hands and feet. Take this opportunity to learn more about the different types of anemia and how they affect the body.
1 - Iron Deficiency Anemia
This is one of the more common types of anemia. People with this type of anemia quite simply aren’t getting or processing enough iron in their body. Iron is one of the requirements for producing red blood cells in the bone marrow. Specifically it doesn’t produce the hemoglobin aspect of the red blood cells. Typically, iron deficiency anemia is treated through supplements. Sometimes, people may choose to alter their diet to increase the amount of iron they are taking in as well. There are high levels of iron in beans, seafood, red meat, chicken, spinach and dried fruit. Pregnant women can suffer from iron deficiency anemia as well since they are providing red blood cells for the baby in addition to themselves.
2 - Sickle Cell Anemia
This form of anemia is one that is passed down genetically. People with sickle cell anemia produce blood cells, but they are not functional. This is because many of the red blood cells don’t take the normal circular shape. Sickle cell anemia causes the red blood cells to form as crescent moons or like sickles (thus the name). People with sickle cell anemia often suffer from large amounts of pain among their symptoms. Medication is important to helping handle the pain and prevent some of the complications of sickle cell anemia. Blood transfusions can also be required at times to ensure the body has enough blood to properly manage.
3 - Aplastic Anemia
People who suffer from aplastic anemia struggle with production of red blood cells. Unlike many other forms of anemia which are obvious at birth, this is a condition that can happen at any stage in life. What’s more interesting is it can begin severe or it can start gently and degenerate. People who have aplastic anemia have to seek treatment. Medication is a starter treatment with blood transfusions and bone marrow transplants becoming treatment options for more serious cases.
4 - Thalassemia
Thalassemia is an inherited disorder. The bloodstream doesn’t carry as much hemoglobin as it’s supposed to. Severe fatigue and weakness in the body is rather common. Mild cases can sometimes avoid treatment. In these cases, symptoms are light or don’t exist. More serious often require fairly frequent blood transfusions. Treatment also needs to include chelation therapy. This is a procedure to get rid of the excessive iron that can build up due to those blood transfusions.
5 - Vitamin Deficiency Anemia
Symptoms of vitamin deficiency anemia are similar to those of the other forms. The cause is right there in the name. People don’t have enough specific vitamins in their diet and body. The vitamins in question are vitamin C, vitamin V-12 and folate. Diets should be altered to include more of these vitamins. Sometimes the body can’t properly absorb enough of these vitamins. The answer is usually again, more vitamins in the diet or through supplements.