Anemia in children: symptoms, causes, treatment

Anemia, which is also called anemia, is a pathological syndrome that is caused by a low level of hemoglobin. A high risk of anemia exists in babies born prematurely or with congenital problems with the gastrointestinal tract. Therefore, such children require special attention to their health. Let's talk in more detail about the causes of anemia in children, as well as about the signs, treatment and prevention of the syndrome.

Causes of anemia in children

This syndrome can be caused by the following reasons:

• Malfunction of the hematopoietic system in the bone marrow.
• Deviations in the work of the gastrointestinal tract. Subsequently, nutrients are simply not absorbed.
• Insufficient development of the organs of the circulatory system.
• Worms.
• Improper nutrition, imbalance during the use of certain foods.
• Lack of certain vitamins and minerals: B, C, iron, copper, folic acid.
• Often, anemia develops in children born premature.

A child's body is much more susceptible to infections and negative environmental influences than an adult. Therefore, even poor ecology or the presence of infectious diseases can cause anemia.

Anemia in an infant

Anemia in infants, in addition to the above reasons, can be caused by improper nutrition of the mother. For example, if a mother does not eat meat, other protein foods, or is on a diet, this can affect the quality of milk and harm the baby, causing him to become anemic. In this case, it is necessary to urgently revise your diet, and possibly to carry out therapy with preparations containing iron.

If anemia is found in a child who is bottle-fed, perhaps the whole point is in the mixture and it must be replaced.

Also, ordinary kefir, even for children, can cause anemia in a child. If you give it earlier than the baby is 8 months old, you can provoke small hemorrhages in the intestinal area.

Signs of anemia in children

The signs of childhood anemia may differ depending on the cause and severity of the disease. Nevertheless, we can talk about general signs characteristic of each type of disease:

• Pallor of the skin and mucous membranes.
• Tachycardia.
• Disturbance of taste sensations.
• Lethargy, weakness, apathy.
• Yellowish skin color.
• Frequent nosebleeds.
• Brittle nails and hair.
• Exposure to colds and infectious diseases.

Symptoms that indicate anemia in the smallest may be: poor appetite, pallor, lethargy. The child becomes excessively sleepy, practically does not show activity. Children a little older get tired very quickly, refuse to get up.

First of all, the signs of the disease can be judged by the condition of the skin and its appendages:

• nail plates become brittle, sometimes they begin to deform;
• hair also suffers, it loses its healthy shine and begins to fall out;
• when viewed in a well-lit area, the earlobes appear very pale.

Anemia especially affects the state of the child's nervous system. He may have frequent dizziness, exhaustion, restless sleep, and bedwetting. Children suffering from this ailment cannot withstand heavy loads, begin to get tired very quickly, and development can be inhibited. Sometimes fainting occurs.

Treatment of anemia in children

For young children, anemia is a rather dangerous disease, since it can progress and cause developmental delays, both physical and mental. Therefore, it is important to start treatment as early as possible.

To cure childhood anemia, first of all, it is necessary to organize the daily regimen and proper sleep of the child, as well as compose a balanced diet for him. Children need daytime sleep and frequent walks, special therapeutic exercises, UFO therapy.

If the child is breastfed, it is necessary to introduce complementary foods to him on time. It is better to start with fruit and vegetable juices, meat purees, vegetables. Baby "artificial" should be fed with a high iron content. Older children should eat more beef and liver, greens, seafood.

As for drug therapy, it mainly consists in the appointment of multivitamin and iron-containing drugs. In some particularly severe cases, it may be necessary to carry out blood transfusion (blood transfusion), as well as other types of surgery: bone marrow transplant or spleen resection.

On average, it takes six to ten weeks for anemia to heal.

Prevention of anemia in children

For the prevention of anemia, proper nutrition and the provision of the body with all the necessary vitamins are important. It is recommended to increase the amount of meat in the diet, especially beef, eggs, cottage cheese, buckwheat porridge. Some types of fish also contain a lot of iron: mackerel, carp, burbot.

Of vegetables and fruits, beets, tomatoes, spinach are the best. An excellent remedy is natural pomegranate juice. In addition, it is very useful to eat fruits such as apples, black currants, blueberries. You can also buy juices produced by some companies for the prevention of anemia (they contain a lot of iron). To supply the child's body with vitamin C, give a rosehip decoction.

Previously, as a preventive measure against anemia, doctors prescribed the liver, and in a half-baked form. But now this is not relevant, since it has already been proven that iron from this product is absorbed much worse than from lean meat. Therefore, the liver (only veal, not chicken), it is recommended to give children closer to the year and in small portions. It is best to give canned food with liver: there it is tested and well thermally processed.

In addition, it is very useful for the prevention of anemia to walk with the baby in the fresh air, do gymnastics, baths and massage for him.

If anemia is recognized and treated in time, it will not cause any adverse consequences, and your baby will be healthy and cheerful again.