Anaemia is the most common nutritional deficiency disorder in the world. It is a condition that occurs when the red
blood cells do not carry enough oxygen to the tissues of the body. WHO defines anaemia as a condition in which the
Haemoglobin (Hb) content of blood is lower than normal as a result of deficiency of one or more essential nutrients, regardless of the cause of such deficiencies
1. Most of the anaemias are due to
inadequate supply of nutrients like
iron, folic acid and vitamin B12, proteins, amino acids, vitamins A, C, and other vitamins of B-complex group i.e.,
niacin and pantothenic acid are also involved in the maintenance of haemoglobin level
2. Globally, anaemia affects 1.62 billion people, which corresponds to 24.8% of the population. The highest prevalence
is in preschool-age children (47.4%), and the lowest prevalence is in men (12.7%). However, the population group
with the greatest number of individuals affected is pregnant women (41.8%)
3. In women, anaemia may become
the underlying cause of maternal mortality and perinatal mortality
4. Nearly 50 per cent of women of reproductive
age and 26 per cent of men in the age group of 15-59 years are anaemic
5. Nine out of ten anaemia sufferers live in developing countries, about 2 billion people suffer from anaemia and
even larger number of people present iron deficiency. An alarming 600 million people in South-East Asia are
suffering from iron deficiency anaemia, predominantly affecting adolescent girls, women of reproductive age and
young children. The condition has a prevalence rate of 74 percent among pregnant women in the region ranging
from 13.4 percent in Thailand to 87 percent in India. About 74 percent of pregnant women in Bangladesh, 63
percent in Nepal, 58 percent in Sri Lanka and Myanmar, and 51 percent in Indonesia suffer from anaemia, According to the National Family Health Survey.
6. more than half of women in India (55%) have
anaemia, including 39 % with mild anemia, 15 % with moderate anemia and 2 percent with severe anaemia.
It is estimated that about 20%-40% of maternal deaths in India are due to
anaemia and One in every two Indian women (56%) suffers from some form of anaemia.
Sign and symptoms
Anaemia may be mild or severe. Mild
anaemia causes fatigue, weakness, paleness, irritability and drowsiness. Concentration and learning ability may be impaired. When severe, anaemia may cause headache, ringing in the ears, spots before the eyes, faintness, dizziness, increased thirst, sweating, a weak and rapid pulse and rapid breathing. Females have powerful leg cramps during exercise. More severe forms have shortness of breath and chest pain. Menstrual period may stop.
Is Anaemia due to Iron Deficiency or is it the tip to the Ice-berg? Let’s understand:
Iron deficiency anaemia does not always
mean iron intake is insufficient. It is mostly because of the iron imbalance in the body. So, blind supplementation of iron does not work well. Homoeopathy has solutions of iron imbalance in the blood and body as a whole. Homoeopathy being a science of exactness needs differential diagnosis to choose the correct medicine pertaining to a case of a disease. Pathological tests give us that exactness. But yes, in pregnancy cases with low MCV (iron deficiency) or high MCV (folic acid deficiency) demand of iron and folic acid is high, one may give regulated supplementation of iron. In other cases homoeopathic individualization works wonders. Haemochromomatosis is yet another disorder of iron metabolism with excess deposition of iron in the tissues with bronze skin pigmentation. Iron overload or haemochromomatosis are silent and can result in cirrhosis of the liver, bacterial infections, dementia, arteriosclerosis, diabetes and stroke.
Various Causes And Types of Anemia
Haemorrhage : After accidental trauma, heavy bleeding during periods in women or bleeding during childbirth, bleeding in medical conditions like gastric ulcers, inflammatory bowel disease, cancer of gut, parasitic manifestation in gut-like hook worm, Schistosomiasis.
Iron deficiency: Iron Deficiency Anemia is common during pregnancy and lactation and from acute haemorrhage or chronic blood loss. The cause is either a decreased intake of iron rich diet or impaired absorption of iron in the gut.
Causes :
Deficiency of Vitamin B12 or Folic Acid: It leads to Megaloblastic Anemia.
Pernicious Anemia: This type of Anemia arises from an autoimmune disorder where there is atrophy of gastric mucosa with the resultant decrease in parietal cells and intrinsic factor produced by these cells. Intrinsic factor is required to absorb Vitamin B12. So, in Pernicious Anemia, defective absorption of Vitamin B12 is the cause and not its nutritional deficiency.
Haemolytic Anemia: It is a result of destruction of red blood cells as in malaria, and abnormal red blood cells prone to breakage as in Sickle Cell Anemia.
Thallasemia : An inherited disorder in which the haemoglobin production is impaired.
Symptoms of Anemia
Pallor; weakness or fatigue; vertigo; mouth soreness; difficulty in breathing or shortness of breath; palpitation; jaundice in Haemolytic Anemia; Koilonychia (spoon-shaped nails) in Iron Deficiency Anemia; pica (desire to eat strange indigestible things including chalk, clay, lime, dry rice, etc) in Iron Deficiency Anemia; gastric symptoms (like diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting); tingling and numbness of limbs in Pernicious Anemia.[toc]
*Natural HomeopathicTreatment For Anemia.*
The Homeopathic mode of treatment, with
the use of medicines made of natural substances, is very effective in treating Anemia. There is no specific Homeopathic remedies for Anemia. The medicines are solely selected on the basis of individual symptoms.
Homeopathic treatment helps to increase the absorption capacity of iron from the diet, according to cause it helps to enhance the immunity of the patient to combat against the disease.
Constitution approach is the best to treat anaemia.
Remedies like
Pulsatilla
Ferrum met
China
Calc.phos
T.n.t
Nat.mur
Calc.ars etc.
Has given best results.
*Homeopathy medicines improve general vitality and well being of a patient to help him fight infections.
* Homeopathy medicines can be useful to control bleeding disorder associated with anemia.
*Homeopathy medicines are effective in curtailing further course and pace of disease.
* Homeopathy medicines having positive influence on the psyche of patient can take care of this mind-body link.
* Homeopathy medicines are beneficial in countering side-effects associated with conventional therapy.
* Homeopathy medicines have very effective long term beneficial effect or preventive effect in terms of countering genetic tendencies and balancing disturbed immunity that are root causes of this serious malady. The chances of relapse significantly diminish with homeopathy treatment.