IRON DEFICIENCY ANEMIA

 Iron deficiency anemia is the most common form of anemia.  Anemia is a condition in which the body does not have enough healthy red blood cells. Iron is an important building block for red blood cells.

Iron-rich foods include:

y y y y y y y y

 When your body does not have enough iron, it will make fewer red blood cells or red blood cells that are too small. This is called iron deficiency anemia.

Chicken and turkey Dried lentils, peas, and beans Eggs (yolk) Fish Meats (liver is the highest source) Peanut butter Soybeans Whole-grain bread

You can get iron deficiency if:

y y y y You lose more blood cells and iron than your body can replace Your body does not do a good job of absorbing iron Your body is able to absorb iron, but you are not eating enough foods with iron in them Your body needs more iron than normal (such as if you are pregnant or breastfeeding) y

Prevention
Everyone's diet should include enough iron. Red meat, liver, and egg yolks are important sources of iron. Flour, bread, and some cereals are fortified with iron.

Treatment
y Taking supplements and eating iron rich foods are important parts of treating iron deficiency anemia. Patients who cannot take iron by mouth can take it through a vein (intravenous) or by an injection into the muscle.

Symptoms
y y y y y y Dark, tar-colored stools or blood Heavy menstrual bleeding (women) Pain in the upper belly (from ulcers) Weight loss (in people with cancer) Tiredness Headaches

Tests that may be done to look for the cause of iron deficiency:
y y y Colonoscopy Fecal occult blood test Upper endoscopy

IODINE DEFICIENCY ANEMIA

What is iodine deficiency? Iodine is an element your thyroid needs to make thyroid hormones. If your diet is deficient in iodine, your thyroid gland will enlarge as it tries to increase the production of thyroid hormones. The enlarged thyroid can cause a mass in the neck known as a goiter. As thyroid levels fall, hypothyroidism develops.
Iodine is needed for the normal metabolism of cells. Metabolism is the process of converting food into energy. Humans need iodine for normal thyroid function, and for the production of thyroid hormones. Signs and symptoms y y y Goiter Cretinism Deficiency Risk factors Following is a list of potential risk factors that may lead to iodine deficiency:[29] 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Low dietary iodine Selenium deficiency Pregnancy Exposure to radiation Increased intake/plasma levels of goitrogens, such as calcium Sex (higher occurrence in women) Smoking tobacco Alcohol (reduced prevalence in users) Oral contraceptives (reduced prevalence in users) Perchlorates Thiocyanates Age (for different types of iodine deficiency at different ages)
y y y y

Adding iodized table salt and foods high in iodine to the diet may be enough to achieve normal iodine levels. Sometimes vitamin and mineral supplements containing iodine may be used. women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should take multivitamins that include iodine.

What you can do to improve your iodine deficiency You may be able to increase your iodine levels by:
y

Eating foods grown in iodine-rich soils Eating meat and dairy products Eating seafood or seaweed Taking vitamin and mineral supplements that contain iodine Using iodized salt

What are the potential complications of iodine deficiency?

y y y y

y y y y y y

Cognitive decline and personality changes Coma Congestive heart failure Cretinism (complication of prenatal iodine deficiency associated with short stature, mental retardation, deaf-mutism, gait abnormalities, and goiter) Depression Goiter (enlargement of the thyroid gland in the neck) Menstrual irregularities Mental retardation Miscarriage or stillbirth Weight gain

How is iodine deficiency treated? Should iodine deficiency develop, the treatment is iodine replacement.

VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY
Vitamin A deficiency is a lack of vitamin A in humans. Vitamin A deficiency also diminishes the ability to fight infections. Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is the leading cause of preventable blindness in children and increases the risk of disease and death from severe infections. In pregnant women VAD causes night blindness and may increase the risk of maternal mortality. from measles and all-cause mortality. Food fortification is also useful for improving vitamin A deficiency. Dietary diversification can also control vitamin A deficiency.

y y

Prevention
y Improvement of people s diet so as to ensure a regular and adequate intake of foods rich in Vitamin A Reducing the frequency and severity of contributory factors

Signs and symptoms

y y y y y Night blindness conjunctival xerosis Bitot s spots corneal xerosis keratomalacia y

Causes
y The major cause is diets which include few animal sources of preformed vitamin A. Breast milk of a lactating mother with vitamin A deficiency contains little vitamin A, which provides a breast-fed child with too little vitamin A Iron deficiency can affect vitamin A uptake.

Treatment
y As an oral form, the supplementation of vitamin A is effective for lowering the risk of morbidity, especially from severe diarrhea, and reducing mortality