Prevention of iron-deficiency anemia unless there is chronic loss of blood

Prevention of iron-deficiency anemia unless there is chronic loss of blood

 There is no need to take advertised remedies to provide extra iron for "tired blood." If there is blood loss which is producing anemia, it's important not only that the anemia be corrected but that the underlying cause be found and corrected. Pernicious Anemia For red blood cell manufacture in the bone marrow, vitamin B12 is needed. 

The vitamin is present in adequate amounts in any balanced diet. But for absorption by the body, B12 requires the presence in the stomach of a substance called "intrinsic factor." In pernicious anemia, intrinsic factor is lacking or operates inadequately. Vitamin B12 absorption is then inadequate, and in such patients the vitamin must be administered by injection. In addition to the common signs for all anemias, pernicious anemia manifests itself in a ted and sore tongue, difficulty in swallowing, a pale lemon skincolor.

In about 10 percent of patients, there are symptoms from spinal cord changes such as numbness and tingling in the lower extremities ("pins and needles" sensations) and unsteady gait. Sometimes the fingers are affected by numbness and tingling. Memory may be affected, and sometimes even psychotic states may be induced. The nervous system changes are referred to as "combined system disease" or "posterolateral sclerosis." It is important that they be recognized for what they are, especially when they occur before anemia becomes manifest.

If treated early, by vitamin B12 injections, the changes may be reversed completely; if neglected and treated too late, complete reversal may not be possible. The diagnosis of pernicious anemia is made through the characteristic appearance of the blood cells, examination of a bone marrow sample obtained by simple needle puncture, a finding of acid deficiency in stomach juice, and by other laboratory tests. It is important that the diagnosis of pernicious anemia be unequivocal because this condition requires lifelong care. If correctly diagnosed and treated, the outlook for pernicious anemia today is excellent. Blood returns to normal. 

Blood circulation and body anatomy

 By the time blood reaches the capillaries, its speed-originally 15 inches a second in the aorta-has slowed to about one fiftieth of an inch a second. The capillaries are so tiny that red blood cells have to move through them in single file-and the red cells are so small that you could cover four or five dozen of them with a single period, such as the one right here. But small as the capillaries are, the capillary system is so extensive- many thousands of miles, all told-that if all the capillaries were open to the flow of blood at any one time, they could hold the entire five-quart supply of the body. This is where the adaptability of the circulatory system comes in. All the capillaries are never open at one time.

They open and close, first in one area, then in another, depending upon need. When, for example, you are exercising vigorously, the muscles need more blood. The heart responds; from over a gallon of blood per minute, it can pump as much as five and a half gallons a minute. And much of this flow now goes to the muscles which need it, diverted from other organs which do not have such pressing need at the moment. In times of extreme exertion, even though the heart is pumping only five times as much blood, the muscles may receive eighteen times as much, as the capillaries in various organs shut down to allow diversion.

The digestive system, for example, will get only one fifth of its normal supply during extreme exertion. Blood flow to the muscles goes up from about two pints a minute to about forty. At rest, the muscles ordinarily get about 20 percent of the heart's output; with extreme exertion, they may get as much as 88 percent. It is only from the brain that blood is never diverted this way. The brain gets its required one and a third pints a minute whether the body is at rest or furiously active.