Daily Medical Records

What is iron deficiency anemia?

The main cause in the development and occurrence of iron deficiency anemia is a decrease in organic iron stores, causing a parallel reduction in the number of red blood cells.

The human body contains about 4 g of iron of which the majority (about 2.5 g) are attached to a protein (transferrin) to form hemoglobin.

Thus, iron is essential for the formation of hemoglobin. In the liver, spleen and bone marrow is stored as ferritin is the iron in the body.

Every day, an adult loses about 1 mg of iron through the skin, mucous, feces and urine. Fertile women have higher losses through menstruation.

During pregnancy there is a degree of anemia caused by an increase in demand for iron by the fetus accompanied by an increased volume of circulating blood.

In adults the most common cause is usually chronic blood loss or decrease in the absorption of this mineral from diseases affecting the duodenum, part of the intestine near the stomach that produces the absorption of iron (ulcers, inflammatory bowel disease , hemorroidesl?).

Children often have this type of anemia during periods of rapid growth and development by increased requirements due to the constant growth of tissues.

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