The National Diet and Nutrition Survey estimates at least 40% of women don’t get enough iron. The RDA is 14.8mg per day, but most of us fall short . We`re running the risk of developing blood disorders, including iron deficiency anaemia and thalessemia.

Over 40 % of British and American women under 34 are at risk of iron deficiency anaemia. Anaemia means that the body isn’t making enough blood. Haemoglobin (a pigment in the red blood cells) carries the oxygen from the tissues to other parts of the body. Anaemia sufferers often feel tired, as less oxygen reaches the major organs.

The life cycle of a red blood cell is usually 120 days, but with anaemia, they often destroy themselves before this. The body doesn’t produce enough blood to support itself. Periods may become much lighter, or stop completely, as the body tries to maintain the iron that it is producing. Annie, 43, has suffered from thalessemia (a genetic haemoglobin defect) for most of her life. Her iron levels aren`t especially low and her body has learnt to adapt to the lack of haemoglobin, but things went wrong when she was pregnant : “The only time it almost got me in trouble was when I was pregnant with my first born. The normal haemoglobin level for a woman is 12- 15g/dL. Your haemoglobin level normally drops in your third trimester, but mine went to 8g/dL and then when I was in labour to 5g/dL. I then needed a caesarian and it dropped to an extremely dangerous 3 g/dL. I needed several blood transfusion and a brief stay in ICU. ”

Iron deficiences aren`t limited to women. Larry, 36, recently discovered he was iron deficient, after being diagnosed with sarcoidosis, a rare autoimmune disorder in 2001.

It`s not always easy to spot the signs of anaemia as they can be mistaken for stress:

Tiredness
Breathlessness
Thirst
Pale complexion
Weight loss
Light, or non- existent periods

Shelly was 36 when she was diagnosed with iron deficiency anamia. Her symptoms included a sore tongue, tiredness, a pale complexion and breathlessness when exerted.

Anaemia is diagnosed by blood tests. Your haemoglobin level will be below 12g/dL. The symptoms usually present themselves at this point. Julia has been a borderline anaemic for most of her life, before becoming fully anaemic for a short time : “After a period of haemorrhaging, where I lost 40% of my blood in less than 48 hours, I became completely anaemic. After a blood transfusion and lots of iron supplements, I am back to being borderline”.

Treatment is simple -usually a course of iron tablets to boost iron levels immediately, and an iron-rich diet. Good sources of iron are red meat, leafy green vegetables, fortified cereals, dried fruit, milk and oysters. Drinking orange juice with each meal helps iron to be absorbed more easily. It is also worth boosting your folic acid levels, either by tablets or in your diet. Folic acid is found in asparagus, wheat germ, oatmeal, whole-grain cereals, spinach and cantaloupe melon. Eating foods rich in iron and folic acid is a good way of preventing anaemia in the first place.

By Sally Aquire