What can lack of iron lead to?

What can lack of iron lead to?

If your body doesn’t have enough iron, it cannot produce enough healthy oxygen-carrying red blood cells. Iron deficiency can cause anemia, which means you have too little hemoglobin. Women in their childbearing years are at higher risk for iron deficiency because of the loss of blood during menstruation.

What type of anemia is caused by a lack of iron in the diet?

Iron deficiency anemia. This most common type of anemia is caused by a shortage of iron in your body. Your bone marrow needs iron to make hemoglobin. Without adequate iron, your body can’t produce enough hemoglobin for red blood cells.

What causes a lack of iron in the body?

A number of different factors can lead to this condition. Lack of iron in the diet – Certain groups of individuals, such as vegans, may lack iron in their diet due to not being able to consume haem iron from animal sources (e.g., liver and meat).

Is there a link between lead and iron deficiency?

Some situations are associated with iron deficiency, although they don’t cause it. Lead poisoning is often associated with iron deficiency anemia, although it does not cause it. The anemia caused by lead poisoning exacerbates symptoms of other types of anemia, such as iron deficiency anemia.

How does iron deficiency affect children and adults?

People with iron deficiency anaemia may also have reduced immune function, so they are more vulnerable to infection. In children, iron deficiency anaemia can affect growth and brain development. In adults, some of the common causes of iron deficiency include:

Why are vegetarians more prone to iron deficiency?

Iron deficiency can occur if you don’t eat enough iron-containing foods or if you have trouble absorbing iron. Vegetarians and vegans may be more prone to iron deficiency (especially premenopausal females) because the form of iron found in plants (non-heme iron) is not absorbed as well as iron found in meat, poultry, and fish (heme iron). 2