What are the causes of nutritional anemia, what measures would you take to prevent?

 Nutritional anaemia refers to condition in which hemoglobin content of the blood is lower than
the normal for age and sex as a result of deficiency of one or more essential nutrients regardless
of the cause of such deficiency.
 Usually nutritional anaemia is a late manifestation of the nutritional deficiency.
 Nutritional anaemia can be attributed to lack of iron, folate and vitamin b12 however other
deficiencies can cause anaemia such as protein deficiency but they can only be so after
excluding the above three.
 The above deficiencies come about secondary to a myriad of causes
 Iron deficiencies
 blood loss that can be attributed to gastrointestinal losses via occult or overt stool
commonly in the tropics secondary to worms
 furthermore, blood loss from the urinary tract as a result of schistosomiasis.
 Inadequate intake can also be a cause as well as malabsorption of the iron can be
attributed as cause of iron deficiency that will cause nutritional anemia.
 Also, prematurity is a risk factor for nutritional anaemia a would have never been
adequate stores for the pediatric population.
 Measures that can be taken to prevent nutritional anaemia secondary to iron deficiency include
the following
 Pregnant mother at risk of iron deficiency should receive supplements from early
pregnancy and have their hemoglobin assessed periodically throughout gestation.
 Premature babies should receive iron supplements from four weeks of birth as this is
when they reach their nadir so as to prevent nutritional anemia
 Promote breastfeeding culture though may have little stores but the iron is readily
available to the baby
 Promote a diet that is adequate in term of quantity and quality, containing all nutrients
including vitamin c that aids in the absorption of iron
 For children suspected to have worms they should receive albendazole so as to deworm
the git as well as praziquantel for the treatment of schistosomiasis
 For those whom present symptomatic of anaemia they should get elemental iron and if there is
indication of blood transfusion, they should also get
 Megaloblastic nutritional anaemia which is secondary to vitamin b12 are rare though folate
deficiency is more common
 B12 deficiency is rare as a result of that it takes long for vitamin b12 stores to get depleted as
compared to the stores of folate that get depleted in about four months.
 Usually megaloblastic anaemia comes as result of reduced intake secondary to eating practices
such as in the vegan communities as well as predisposition to malabsorption from the conditions
such as atrophic gastritis that cause pernicious anaemia.
 Measures that can be taken to prevent the nutritional anaemia secondary to folate and vitamin
b12 are the following
 Promote breastfeeding
 Good dietary habits in meals that are adequate in quantity and quality, encourage both
vegetable and meat diet to replenish the stores.
 Fortification of foods with folate .