Could Your Child Have Anemia?

Nowadays not too many children actually suffer from anemia. But many children that come from poor families still do. It mostly occurs between six and twelve months of age. Most babies that suffer from anemia are usually very active and may appear to be healthy. They symptoms that often appear in adults are usually not seen in very young children. A blood test is usually required to determine the amount of hemoglobin in the blood. When the protein in the red blood cells that performs the important function of distributing oxygen is in low supply, anemia is usually diagnosed.

This is why most doctors encourage parents to give their babies and iron supplement. A baby that is anemic is usually born that way, but may not become anemic until later in infancy. It can also be caused by an inadequate intake of folic acid or the vitamin B12. For breastfed babies this usually depends on what the mother eats. If the mother is getting enough of the needed vitamins than you can be sure that the baby is too. Iron however is the most essential building block of hemoglobin. Most full term babies are born with plenty of iron, which they carry for the first few months. However breastfeeding does not ensure adequate iron intake one the prenatal iron stores have been depleted.

Anemia that is caused by iron deficiency is most common in babies born with poor iron stores. It can also develop later in infants with intestinal problems or metabolic problems. These problems can sometimes interfere with the absorption of iron. A friend of mine had a baby who was born with acid reflux disease, and the doctor told her that anemia is one of the problems she should be concerned about. According to the doctor the acid reflux disease causes the baby to spit up a lot more than normal, which may lower the amount of food that the baby is taking in.

This can also mean lower amounts of iron. She also had a problem with her baby taking vitamins. No matter what she tried the baby just refused to take the iron supplement. So as you could imagine this caused more problems. Eventually what she ended up doing is pumping out her breast milk and mixing the vitamins into the milk. She had to do this at least one every day to make sure the baby got his vitamins. We also found out that you should avoid feeding your baby bran, because it can interfere with iron absorption.

So if you think that your baby may be suffering from anemia, you should definitely talk to your doctor about it. There are many different ways that you can deal with this particular problem.