If you are concerned about your iron levels, you may want to test your iron and speak to your doctor.Įach time you donate blood, you will receive a wellness check that includes an iron screening to ensure your iron levels are adequate for you to be able to donate blood. Iron supplements and even blood transfusions are other ways to combat low iron levels. Eating iron-rich foods like cooked or raw dark leafy greens, prunes, raisins, pumpkin seeds and other foods listed herecan help treat or prevent iron deficiency. If your iron deficiency anemia is caused by low iron body reserves, it can often be corrected with a change in diet. If you have a more severe case, it can cause tiredness, shortness of breath, or even chest pain. If you have mild or moderate iron-deficiency anemia, you may not have any signs or symptoms. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute states that, "girls between the ages of 14 and 50 years need more iron than boys and men of the same age and that women are at higher risk for iron-deficiency anemia." According to the NHLBI, it's estimated that 20% of women of childbearing age have iron-deficiency anemia. There are several factors that make iron deficiency anemia more common in women, including pregnancy, significant menstrual bleeding, and uterine fibroids. Having iron deficiency results in fewer red blood cells being produced by your body and less oxygen is transported from your lungs, making you feel tired. 4 Normal Hgb levels also depend on the age of a person. Abimola Farinde on Medscape says that normal hemoglobin levels for men could be as low as 13.0 g/dL. If your body does not have enough iron, you can develop iron deficiency anemia. Normal hemoglobin levels of women: 12.3 15.3 g/dL (average is 13.8 g/dL) Other lab tests results may have a slightly different normal range for hemoglobin levels. These numbers are different for men because they tend to store more iron in their bodies than women. On average, a woman needs 18 mg of iron a day. Without an adequate amount of iron in your bloodstream, your body is unable to get the oxygen it requires.įor women, the normal hemoglobin range is generally defined as 12.0 to 15.5 grams of hemoglobin per deciliter of blood. Pregnancy: Without iron supplementation, iron deficiency anemia occurs in many pregnant women because iron stores need to serve their own increased blood volume as well as be a source of hemoglobin for the developing fetus.Your body requires iron to make hemoglobin, the substance in your red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout your body.If part of the small intestine has been bypassed or removed surgically, that may affect the ability to absorb iron and other nutrients. An intestinal disorder such as celiac disease, which affects the intestine's ability to absorb nutrients from digested food, can lead to iron-deficiency anemia. An inability to absorb iron: Iron from food is absorbed into the bloodstream in the small intestine.For proper growth and development, infants and children need iron from their diet. Normal ranges for Hb vary among men and women (with different values for pregnancy), different age groups, different altitudes, and cigarette smokers. Examples of iron-rich foods include meat, eggs, leafy green vegetables and iron-fortified foods.
If a person consumes too little iron, over time the body can become iron-deficient.
Blood loss: Blood contains iron within red blood cells.Anemia caused by destruction of red blood cells (Haemolysis): Inherited conditions, such as sickle cell anemia and thalassemia, stressors such as infections, drugs, snake or spider venom, or certain foods.