Iron deficiency anemia

Alternative names:

anemia - iron deficiency

Definition:

A decrease in the red cells of the blood caused by too little iron.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

Iron deficiency anemia is the most common form of anemia. Approximately 20% of women, 50% of pregnant women, and 3% of men are iron deficient. Iron is an essential component of hemoglobin, the oxygen carrying pigment in the blood. Iron is normally obtained through the food in the diet and by the recycling of iron from old red blood cells.

The causes of iron deficiency are too little iron in the diet, poor absorption of iron by the body, and loss of blood (including from heavy menstrual bleeding). It is also caused by lead poisoning in children. Anemia develops slowly after the normal stores of iron have been depleted in the body and in the bone marrow. Women, in general, have smaller stores of iron than men and have increased loss through menstruation, placing them at higher risk for anemia than men. In men and postmenopausal women, anemia is usually due to gastrointestinal blood loss associated with ulcers or the use of aspirin or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDS).

High-risk groups include: women of child-bearing age who have blood loss through menstruation; pregnant or lactating women who have an increased requirement for iron; infants, children, and adolescents in rapid growth phases; and people with a poor dietary intake of iron through a diet of little or no meat or eggs for several years. Risk factors related to blood loss are peptic ulcer disease, long term aspirin use, colon cancer, uterine cancer, and repeated blood donation. The incidence is 2 out of 1000 people.