information will help your doctor treat the anemia andits underlying cause Most anemias are treatable so anaccurate diagnosis is important
Medical and Family HistoriesYour doctor will want to know about your signs andsymptoms and how long yoursquove had them He or shealso may ask whether yoursquove had an illness that cancause anemia You also may be asked about your dietany medicines or supplements you take and whetheryou have a family history of anemia or anemia-related
Physical ExamA physical exam can confirm signs and symptoms andprovide information about what organs or body systemsmay be involved As part of a physical exam your doctormay check the color of your skin gums and nail bedsand look for signs of bleeding or infection He or shemay listen to your heart and lungs feel your abdomen ordo a pelvic or rectal exam to check for internal bleeding
Your doctor will recommend tests to identify the type ofanemia you may have and its severity Often the firsttest is a complete blood count (CBC) which providesuseful information about your blood Depending on theCBC results your doctor may recommend further testsof your blood or bone marrow (the soft tissue insidebones that makes blood cells)
Anemia often is easily treated The treatment yourdoctor chooses will depend on the type of anemia youhave its cause and how severe it is
983150 Raise your RBC count or hemoglobin level to im-prove your bloodrsquos ability to carry oxygen
If you have a mild or moderate anemia with nosymptomsmdashor if your anemia isnrsquot getting worsemdashyoumay not need treatment Some anemias are treatedwith dietary changes and nutritional supplementsOther anemias are treated with medicines proceduressurgery or blood transfusions (for severe anemia)
You can take steps to prevent or control anemia Theseactions can give you greater energy and improve yourhealth and quality of life Here are a few simple things
Follow a Healthy Diet Following a healthy diet ensures that you get enoughof the nutrients that your body needs to make healthyblood cells These nutrients include iron vitamin B12folate and vitamin C These nutrients are found in avariety of foods Healthy eating also is good for youroverall health
983150 Focus on nutrient-dense foods and beveragesmdashvegetables fruits whole grains fat-free or low-fatdairy products seafood lean meats and poultryeggs beans and peas and nuts and seeds
983150 Maintain a healthy weight by bal-ancing the calories you get fromfoods and beverages with thecalories you use through physi-cal activity
Make following a healthy diet afamily goal Infants youngchildren and teens growrapidly A healthy dietsupports growth anddevelopment andcan help preventanemia Have
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healthy foods at home and show your children how tomake healthy choices when theyrsquore away from home
Also help your parents or other older relatives enjoy ahealthy nutrient-rich diet Anemia is common in olderadults because of chronic (ongoing) diseases lack ofiron and poor diet
Avoid Substances That Can Cause or Trigger AnemiaContact with chemicals or toxins in the environmentcan cause some types of anemia Others types of ane-mia are triggered by certain foods or cold temperaturesIf you have one of these types of anemia avoid thesetriggers if you can
Information About
Specific Types of AnemiaIron-Deficiency Anemia
Your body needs iron to make hemoglobin the
protein in RBCs that carries oxygen The main way
you get iron is from food At certain timesmdashsuch as
during pregnancy growth spurts or blood lossmdashyour
body may need to make more RBCs than usual
Thus your body needs more iron than usual Iron-
deficiency anemia occurs if your body canrsquot keep up
with its need for iron
Groups at risk
983148 Infants and children adolescents and women of
childbearing age
983148 People who have certain diseases and conditionssuch as Crohnrsquos disease celiac disease or kidney
failure
983148 People who donrsquot get enough iron from the foods
they eat
983148 People who have internal bleeding
Treatment Iron supplements and dietary changes
(eating food rich in iron and vitamin C which
increases iron absorption from food)
Pernicious Anemia
Vitamin B12 and folate (another B vitamin) are neededto make healthy RBCs Your body absorbs these
vitamins from foods Pernicious anemia occurs if
your body canrsquot make enough RBCs because it canrsquot
absorb enough vitamin B12 from food
Groups at risk
983148 People who have conditions that prevent them
from absorbing vitamin B12
983148 People who donrsquot get enough vitamin B12 in their
diets
Treatment Vitamin B12 supplements and dietary
changes (eating foods rich in vitamin B12 such meat
fish eggs dairy products and breads cereals and
other foods fortified with vitamin B12)
Aplastic Anemia
The term ldquoanemiardquo usually refers to a condition in
which your blood has a lower than normal number
of RBCs However some types of anemia such as
aplastic anemia cause lower than normal numbers
of other blood cells too Aplastic anemia can occur
if your bone marrow is damaged and canrsquot make
enough RBCs WBCs and platelets The causes of
aplastic anemia can be acquired or inherited
Groups at risk
983148 People undergoing radiation or chemotherapy
exposed to toxins or taking certain medicines
983148 People who have diseases or conditions thatdamage the bone marrow
Treatment Depends on the cause of the anemia
Treatments may include blood transfusions
medicines blood and marrow stem cell transplants
and lifestyle changes
Hemolytic Anemia
Normally RBCs have a lifespan of about 120 days
Your body constantly makes new RBCs to replace
ones that die Sometimes RBCs are destroyed
before their normal lifespan is up Hemolytic anemia
occurs if your body canrsquot make enough RBCs toreplace those destroyed Acquired hemolytic anemia
occurs if your body gets a signal to destroy RBCs
even though they are normal Inherited hemolytic
anemia is related to problems with the genes that
control RBCs
Groups at risk
983148 Risk groups differ depending on the cause and
type of hemolytic anemia
Treatment Depends on the cause of the anemia
Treatments may include blood transfusions
medicines surgery and procedures and lifestylechanges
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With some types of anemia yoursquoll want to reduce yourchances of getting an infection To do this wash yourhands often avoid people who have colds and stayaway from crowds
Work With Your Doctor Visit your doctor if you have signs or symptoms ofanemia If yoursquore diagnosed with anemia follow your
doctorrsquos advice about diet supplements medicines andother treatments
Visit your doctor regularly for checkups and ongoingcare and tell him or her about any new or changingsymptoms
Older children and teens who have severe anemia mayhave an increased risk of injury or infection Talk withyour doctor about ways to keep them as healthy as pos-sible and whether they need to avoid certain activities
Girls and women who have heavy menstrual periods
may need regular screenings and followup with theirdoctors to prevent or control iron-deficiency anemia
Talk To Your FamilySome types of anemiamdashsuch as pernicious anemiaFanconi anemia or thalassemiamdashcan be inherited Ifyoursquove been diagnosed with one of these kinds of ane-mia talk to your family members Suggest they visittheir doctors for a checkup to see whether they alsomight have anemia
If you have children or teens who have anemia talk to
them about how they can take an active role in theirown care Encourage them to learn about their condi-tion and make decisions with their doctor This canhelp young people feel more in control and have a morepositive outlook about their health
Clinical Trials
The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI)supports research aimed at learning more about blooddiseases and disorders including anemia Common
types of anemia are generally straightforward andeasily treated As a result the NHLBIrsquos clinical researchon anemia focuses on a few specific rarer types of thedisorder Research on these and other blood disorderscontinues to be an important priority for the NHLBI
The NHLBIrsquos research efforts often depend on thewillingness of volunteers to take part in clinical trialsClinical trials test new ways to prevent diagnose ortreat various diseases and conditions You can takepart in a clinical trial to gain access to new treatmentsbefore theyrsquore widely available and help add to scien-tific knowledge
For more information about clinical trials related toanemia talk with your doctor You also can visit thefollowing Web sites to learn more about clinical re-search and to search for clinical trials
983150 wwwclinicaltrialsgov
983150 clinicalresearchnihgov
983150 wwwnhlbinihgovstudiesindexhtm
To Learn More
The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute(NHLBI) provides information about the causes pre-vention diagnosis and treatment of anemia and otherblood diseases The NHLBI also provides dependableinformation about heart and lung diseases and condi-tions and sleep disorders Resources include numerouspublications tools and the NHLBI Web site
NHLBI Health Information CenterPO Box 30105Bethesda MD 20824ndash0105Phone 301ndash592ndash8573TTY 240ndash629ndash3255Fax 301ndash592ndash8563Web site wwwnhlbinihgovhealthinfoctrindexhtm
NHLBI Web SiteThe NHLBI Web site offers health education materialshealth assessment tools and resources for patients thepublic and health professionalswwwnhlbinihgov
Diseases and Conditions AndashZ IndexThe NHLBIrsquos Diseases and Conditions Index (DCI) pro-vides complete dependable plain-language informationabout heart lung and blood diseases and sleep disorderswwwnhlbinihgovhealthdciindexhtml
USDA ChooseMyPlategovThe US Department of Agriculturersquos (USDArsquos)ChooseMyPlategov Web site has information tips andresources to help you learn more about healthy eatingwwwchoosemyplategov
NIH Publication No 11-7629A September 2011