Being a woman, since women develop anemia more often than men do.

Your body needs adequate iron, vitamin 12, folate and other nutrients from the foods you eat in order to produce healthy amounts of hemoglobin and red blood cells. This can happen if you don’t eat enough in general, you eat a restrictive diet or sometimes if you’re a vegetarian/vegan who avoids animal products (since these are good sources of iron and B vitamins).

Your body is destroying the red blood cells you have due to changes in your immune system.

You’ve been losing too much blood due to injury, menstruation or other circumstances that cause bleeding.

You’re not producing enough red blood cells.

There are three primary reasons why you might develop anemia from not having enough red blood cells: You can find out if you have low red blood cells by taking a hematocrit test, along with a hemoglobin test.

But anemia symptoms typically worsen as the condition progresses, especially if more than one risk factor is contributing to the problem. You should also be aware that, initially, anemia can be so mild that it often goes unnoticed for a period of time, sometimes even for years. Cold hands and feet or other signs of body temperature changes.Cognitive problems, including brain fog, difficulty concentrating and trouble getting work done.Shortness of breath, trouble breathing, low stamina and reduced endurance.Here are some of the most common anemia symptoms adults tend to experience: Therefore, when it comes to knowing whether or not you should be checked for anemia, it’s important to understand how anemia symptoms usually manifest and what makes them different than simply feeling exhausted due to other life circumstances. These can include stress, lack of sleep, battling a virus and a busy work schedule, among others. Feeling a little “out of it” and tired is pretty common for many adults due to compounding reasons. Without enough oxygen-carrying red blood cells in your body, it’s impossible to transport adequate amounts of oxygen to your brain, tissues, muscles and cells. Your body needs iron to perform many functions throughout every single day, but it’s common for many people to live with low iron levels due to factors like blood loss (such as from menstruation), a poor diet or an inability to absorb enough iron from food sources. This is alarming considering the essential roles that iron plays, including facilitating oxygen distribution.

They are also important for immunity, including fighting infections, as well as clotting blood and preventing too much bleeding.Īnemia is closely related to iron deficiency. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency in the world.

If you have anemia, your body simply doesn’t receive enough oxygen-rich blood, leaving you tired and weak. It helps cells bring oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body. Hemoglobin is an iron-rich protein that gives your blood its red color. What Is Anemia?Īnemia is the condition marked by a deficiency of red blood cells or of hemoglobin in the blood. Below you’ll learn about the most common signs of anemia, as well as the best ways to treat these symptoms and reduce anemia risk factors, such as iron deficiency or eating a highly processed diet. Although it’s rare, anemia that remains untreated can even become deadly.Ĭonsidering the seriousness of anemia and how common it is among certain age groups - especially women during reproductive years or adults with existing health conditions who are over 65 - it’s imperative that you learn how to recognize anemia symptoms in yourself or your loved ones. Severe anemia or unabated anemia can also sometimes cause complications, including damage to your heart, brain and other organs, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI). Because a side effect of anemia is low circulation of oxygen, anemia symptoms usually include muscle weakness, ongoing fatigue or lethargy, brain fog, and sometimes mood changes. Anemia, also known as anaemia, occurs when your blood has a lower than normal number of red blood cells or if your red blood cells don’t have enough hemoglobin.

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