Month: March 2021

Iron Rich Foods – Quick and Easy Ways to Increase Your Iron Intake

It is easy to increase your iron intake by eating iron rich foods. However, a recent survey conducted among young women highlighted a big gap in their knowledge of iron rich foods:

Twenty six percent (26%) of young women admitted to having a hard time identifying foods rich in iron.

Twenty six percent (26%) of young women knew that liver is a good source of iron and forty percent (40%) are aware that green vegetables are a good source too.

Seventeen percent (17%) knew eating fortified cereal for breakfast could increase iron intake.

Twelve percent (12%) cited baked beans as one of the many iron rich foods.

Ten percent (10%) knew boiled eggs contain a good amount of iron.

Only nine percent (9%) mentioned red meat as among the top iron rich foods.

Two percent (2%) considered eating dried figs to up their iron intake.

Iron Rich Foods Overview

Consumption of iron rich foods is important in ensuring that your body is performing the way it should. It is also important in preventing diseases caused by iron deficiency. And it might surprise you that hear that iron deficiency is the number one nutrient deficiency in then United States and a major issue world wide. Here is a list of some the top iron rich foods which you should maximize in your diet:

Beef, pork, lamb and organ meat like liver. The redder the meat the better.

Poultry, especially the darker meat from the legs

Oily fish like sardines and mackarel and mollusks such as mussels, clams and oysters

Iron Rich Foods for Vegetarians:

It may be difficult for vegetarians to get the recommended level of iron from their diet, since the body does not absorb iron found in vegetables as readily as that found in animal products. If you are vegetarian, here are some facts to help you maximize your iron intake.

Green leafy vegetables

Incorporating food or drinks rich in vitamin C, such as fruits, vegetables and fruit juice will help maximize absorption.

Eat iron fortified foods. You can find fortified breakfast cereal, fortified rice and much more.

Nuts, apricots and other dried fruits are great iron rich snacks.

Menu Ideas

With all these iron rich foods, it should be easy for you to prepare a delicious daily meal plan. Here are some ideas to help you get started.

Breakfast:

fortified breakfast cereals or biscuits made of whole wheat with semi-skimmed milk

wholemeal toast with poached egg, two low-fat sausages, grilled tomato and baked beans

a glass of juice rich in vitamin C such as orange or grapefruit

Lunch:

wholemeal toast topped with sardines

bean salad or chicken salad

a glass of smoothie or juice

Ideas:

stir fried beef or vegetable

grilled beef burger, preferably low-fat and oven chips

a glass of juice or fruits

Snacks:

almonds

dried apricots or raisins

slice of gingerbread cake

Iron Absorption

Iron absorption has a huge impact in your body’s iron level. Aside from increasing your intake of the right foods, you should also increase your intake of foods that enhance iron absorption, such as foods rich in vitamin C and decrease or completely avoid foods that inhibit iron absorption, such as coffee and tea.

When you eat food rich in iron along with absorption enhancers, you can really boost your daily iron intake.…

12 Effective Home Remedies for Anemia

Anemia refers to a medical condition when the red blood cells (RBC) count falls below normal or the hemoglobin level drops. When hemoglobin falls below 13.5 grams/100 ml, a male is considered anemic. In females, it is below 12.0 grams/100 ml. Red blood cells produced in bone marrow have a normal life span of about 120 days. Any occurrence that disrupts the normal life span, leads to anemia. The two basic broad factors causing anemia are decrease in red blood cells or hemoglobin production and loss of blood. Vitamin B12 deficiency, certain infections of bone marrow, certain medications, chemotherapy, and antibodies clinging to the red blood cell surfaces, presence of intestinal parasites feeding on vitamins, iron deficiency, dearth of hydrochloric acid needed for digestion, problems of bleeding piles and heavy menstruation may lead to anemia.

Patients with kidney failure, those undergoing chemotherapy or having acquired immunodeficiency syndrome are at the risk of developing anemia. Classification of anemia depends on MCV or volume of individual red blood cells. Anemia, thus, may be classified as follows: microcytic anemia or low cell volume anemia with MCV below 80, normocytic anemia or normal cell volume anemia with MCV ranging 80-100, macrocytic anemia or large cell volume anemia with MCV beyond 100. A person may be anemic through heredity for hereditary disorders often cause red blood cells to live less.

Symptoms of Anemia

1. Getting fatigued easily

2. Looking pale

3. Shortness of breath

4. Palpitations

5. Hair loss

6. Malaise

7. Weakening of heart and worsening of cardiac problems.

Home Remedies for Anemia

1. One may take 2-3 apples a day. This raises the iron content and is a simple solution for anemia.

2. Daily intake of beet juice is a cure for anemia.

3. Two baths with cold water can effectively treat anemia.

4. Four dried figs may be taken daily. It will restore the health of an anemic.

5. Sunlight stimulates and triggers red blood cells. Therefore sunbaths are very good for anemic.

6. A mixture of lemon, honey and apple cider vinegar may be taken every morning in empty stomach. This is an effective home remedy for anemia.

7. Consumption of mashed banana mixed with honey may be taken daily to raise blood level.

8. One may soak 7 almonds overnight, peel off the skin next morning, and make a paste. One spoonful of the paste may be taken daily.

9. A glass of tomato juice may be taken daily. It is an effective home remedy.

10. Protein rich non vegetarian diet is recommended for anemic, for it supplies the body with Vitamin B12.

11. Cooking in iron vessels significantly increases the iron content in food, and is good for anemic.

12. Massaging is a beneficial remedy, for it helps in maintaining high blood content in body.…

Anemia and How to Treat it Holistically

Anemia is usually considered to be an iron deficiency and the normal medical treatment is to flood your system with an isolated and synthetic iron supplement. This may give you a boost of energy in the short term, but is not going to fix the cause of the problem. Which is that you can’t assimilate the iron you receive in your diet.

It’s probably not that you don’t get enough iron. It’s all about an imbalance in you. You’re not able to use what you do get. Other symptoms are a pale skin, especially your face or gums. That and low energy. Basically anemia is all about the blood. About low levels of haemoglobin in your blood.

In homeopathy, we recognise that sickness is because of an energetic imbalance in your immune system. And it’s only when this is addressed that your sickness will quietly disappear for good.

The homeopathic remedy Ferrum phosphoricum (Ferrum phos for short) is made from the mineral salt iron phosphate. The combination of ferrum and phosphate is particularly effective for re-establishing balanced levels of haemoglobin in the blood.

Blood is at the centre of Ferrum phos. That means anemia (hence the paleness). It means haemorrhages, or bleeding, which can be from anywhere. It could be your nose, or any orifice. But this is venous blood, relating to the veins rather than the pump action bleeding from the arteries. So the bleeding is passive or sluggish.

Even though the blood is from the veins, it’s bright in colour, rather than the dark colour normally associated with venous bleeding.

So discharges are frequently blood stained. They can look a bit like meat water. If this symptom picture looks like you, then this remedy is likely to not only help your anemia in the short term, but to redress the lack of balance too, so resolving it permanently.…

Fanconi Anemia Defined – Symptoms & Treatments For Fanconi Anemia

Fanconi anemia is a rare form of anemia which can only be acquired genetically and affects the bone marrows ability to produce a sufficient amount of all blood cells needed in the body which include the red, white, and platelet cells. Fanconi anemia should not be confused with “Fanconi syndrome”, which is a rare condition affecting the kidney’s.

This type of anemia is solely caused by genetics and inherited when one of the abnormal genes from each parent is passed down to an individual. This condition is usually diagnosed early on in life with individuals being between the ages of two and fifteen years old.

Symptoms Associated with Fanconi Anemia

The primary symptoms of fanconi anemia are the same as those of other types of anemia and include tiredness, fatigue, frequent viral infections, and the inability to control bleeding. These symptoms are caused by insufficient blood cells including the red blood cells which carry oxygen throughout the body, white blood cells which aid in preventing viral infections, and the platelets which control bleeding by clotting or sticking together.

Fanconi anemia can potentially cause multiple birth defects including mental retardation, disfigurement of the hands and arms, and learning disabilities.

Treatments for Fanconi Anemia

In some individuals this type of anemia can be mild or moderate with only a small change or drop in blood cell levels which do not require such things as transfusions, and they are monitored and checked on a regular basis for certain types of cancer such as lymphoma or leukemia. Prescription medications can be given which helps to increase these levels; however, they only last for short periods of time.

In more severe cases blood transfusions or a bone marrow transplant may be necessary. In some cases these low blood cell counts have been cured through a bone marrow transplant when an exact match-typically from a sibling- has been obtained. However, even with this type of bone marrow transplant the patient is still at risk and must be monitored for the development of other cancers.…

Anemia in Dogs

Anemia in dogs is a common thing, just like in humans. Sometimes it is very hard to diagnose it. Anemia is not severe unless it is properly controlled. If it is left out of hand, it can cause death.

The Hemolytic Anemia

This kind of anemia is an autoimmune disease that depends on many factors. Most of the times the female dogs are more affected than males. Some breeds are more affected than others and these breeds include: terriers, spaniels, poodles, etc. Some triggers for the hemolytic anemia may include bee venom, bee infection, zinc contamination etc.

Possible Causes

The red blood cells in the body do not function properly and this can cause anemia.

Another cause may be the disorders and diseases of the red blood cells. Sometimes blood loss can determine this and so does the insufficient production of red blood cells are also responsible for the same. Other infectious diseases, iron deficiency, severe injuries, cancer, autoimmune diseases and some genetic disorders can cause this in dogs.

Basic Symptoms

Sometimes the pale gums are a clear indication of anemia. Many dogs also display weakness and they can even faint many times. Sometimes they even develop a yellowish skin and they vomit. In rare cases anemia can determine blood in the urine or the feces. Sometimes the pulse of the dog tends to decrease and he also experiences difficulty in breathing. Behavior changes also occur.

The Treatments

Treating the underlying problems is the best way to deal with this issue. Healing anemia is all about curing the causes. It is best to go to the veterinarian and let him provide the treatment. He will do several tests to determine the best course of action. The dog must also eat quality dog food.

Also, make sure to keep the dog well hydrated. Make him take sufficient rest. These remedies will not help is getting rid of anemia but, they will definitely help in alleviating the situation. Also, make sure that the place where the dog is residing in clean, neat and tidy. Also, you must give your dog food that has a lot of iron in it.

In this way he will get iron through natural sources. If the dog suffers from ticks, worms, fleas or any parasite you must get rid of them. There are many remedies that will help you with that and they are not at all expensive.…

How to Recognize Canine Anemia in Boston Terriers

January of this year, my Boston Terrier – Rose came down with hemolytic anemia. The cause of her anemia is still unknown.  Because I did not recognize her anemia quick enough, it almost cost her life.  Perhaps by learning the steps of how to recognize it, you can save your dog’s life. 

Observation. The first step is to look over your dog. 

*Look at their gums. Are they pale or yellow in color?

*Is the tongue pale in color?

*Does your dog act depressed?

*Do they no longer jump up on the couch?

*Do they act they can’t keep their eyes open? Like their eyelids weigh a thousand pounds.

*Have they lost their appetite?

*Do they lack energy?

*Do they growl or snap easily? 

Feel. The second step is to touch and feel your dog.  

*Does your dog’s belly feel too warm?

*Put your hand over their chest. 

*Does their heart feel that it is beating too fast?

*Are they breathing with greater effort or more rapidly than normal? 

Listen. The third step is to pay attention to their breathing. 

*Has your dog started to snore or are they snoring louder than they usually do? 

*If you recognize any of these symptoms, go to your veterinary immediately. Do not hesitate.  

The Last Step Is Treatment Of Canine Hemolytic Anemia.

Depending on the severity of the case, your dog may receive a blood transfusion. (My dog – Rose received a transfusion that was donated by a bull mastiff. Actually the unit of blood was split between my Boston Terrier and a poodle.) 

This will probably be followed up by IV steroids. (My dog – Rose had these and they left an IV access in her much they do humans for several days. I would include a picture of this now if I could. Rose was very good about leaving the IV alone.) 

Other treatments include the use of immunosuppressant medications. With hemolytic anemia, the dog’s own system is destroying its own red blood cells and these medications are used to slow down that destruction. 

Switching the dog to oral steroids (and removing the IV) occurs after several days and the dog can go home when they are no longer losing blood (or destroying their own red blood cells).  

It is now September and I still have to give my Rose oral steroids, an immunosuppressant, a blood pressure medication (the hemolytic anemia caused her heart murmur to become worse), liquid and tablet forms of multivitamins with minerals, and a CoQ10 (also for heart support). 

If I had not caught this anemia and got treatment of my dog, she would have died.  

Please pay attention to the list of symptoms above and again if you recognize any of them in your dog – go to the veterinary immediately! …

Headache Prevention – 3 Reasons Why Some Pain Just Won’t Go Away

Have you ever had one of those headaches that won’t go away? Well there are a few things you should know about them. Headaches are bad enough at the best of times. But those that persist are a particular problem.

Let’s say you feel a strong headache coming on. You reach for the strong analgesic and you relax and wait for the pain to subside. But you can sense that underneath the pain relief the headache is waiting to surface as soon as the meds wear off.

Some people experience this kind of headache periodically. It requires more than some simple over the counter pain relief. It needs something with a bit more power. The problem is this kind of headache tends to be so strong that it seems that only a couple of hours after taking the pain relief the pain is trying to reassert itself.

Now you have the pain back plus the left over feeling from the meds which leaves you washed out. Let’s assume that if this is a pattern, you have ruled out any serious pathology such as tumours. In this case you have another problem. And this problem needs fixing.

With many headaches the pain killers allow your arteries to relax and they suppress any inflammation so you are completely recovered within 2-3 hours. But in this case another problem is still occurring and wants to carry on hurting you as if you never took any pain killers.

There are 3 main culprits.

1.Neck Pain. This is the most obvious. Your pain in the neck will definitely cause headaches. Once the pain killers wear off the neck pain will carry on as usual. Treatment as early as possible can prevent this, but if you have a chronic problem its best to have regular preventative therapy.

2. Jaw Misalignment. The TMJ Joint uses more muscles than any other joint in the body. Most of these muscles are quite fine and prone to holding tension. This area is a popular place to hold stress. Most people will lock stress in their shoulders, neck and TMJ. Stress management is you best long term correction. The tension from the TMJ-Temporo Mandibular Joint-can extend to the muscles of the scalp and the forehead.

3. A sinus infection. This can easily go undiagnosed. A chronic low grade infection can tick along causing pain and general feeling of lethargy. This needs to be properly diagnosed but is worth checking just in case. It can also present as tooth ache.

There 2 things you can do.

1. Sit and relax, place your tongue behind your bottom teeth and breathe in a relaxed manner. This tends to release the jaw muscles.

2. Locate the sore points on your jaw muscles with your thumbs and massage as strongly as you can tolerate. This can be quite painful, but indicates how stressed these muscles are.

Understanding and treating these background problems can reduce the frequency and severity of headaches for you quite quickly.…