Homeopathy 

Anaemia

The commonest blood related disorder / ailment / condition is anaemia. It is not a disease in itself but arises as an effect of disease or failure of function in the body. The first and foremost clinical examination done for every patient will be for this complaint only since anaemia will be an invitation for any disease with weakened body stamina or immune function. One can feel a sinking stamina with anaemia.

Anaemia medically stands for lowered haemoglobin level (normal – for male - 13.5 - 17.0 Gms% & for female - 12.0-15.5 Gms%) either with normal or lowered red blood cells depending upon the age and sex. Haemoglobin is basic requirement of the body necessary for transporting oxygen throughout the body. Haemoglobin functions as the moving power stations in the body. So lowered Hb% may cause fatigability, unusual tiredness and energy shutdown in all the parts of the body. At the most, 10 % of the blood i.e. 350 ml to 400 ml can be donated without any feeling of exhaustion.

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Incidences - Commonly vulnerable persons are:

• Women – usually have more incidences than males. They suffer commonly during the period of puberty / menstruation / pregnancy / breastfeeding

• Elderly people – commonly suffer more with symptoms than with young due to lack of tolerance, resources, reduced oxygen carrying capacity of haemoglobin and reduced restoration / re-establishment of blood cells.

• Babies suffer especially when they are born premature and take less food

• Persons who are devoid of or avoid good nutritious food

• Persons who suffer with chronic diseases / ailments, especially stomach ulcers, cancer, septic conditions, infections

• Persons who are in prolonged treatments with antibiotics, anti-coagulants, Non Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin, ibuprofen, etc.

Causes - Anaemia can occur in any one at any time due to
Nutrition – lack of nutrition or poor supply of especially iron, Vit B12, folic acid and Vit C or poor absorption may reflect in production of cells to cause insufficiency. Lack of

• Iron – causes iron deficiency anaemia. It is most commonly seen in the growing stage of poor children, pregnant / nursing / heavily menstruating women.

• Folic acid and vitamin B12 – causes Megaloblastic anaemia (red blood cells will be seen in bigger size without complete maturation).

Blood loss – may be due to acute / chronic reasons either due to physiological or pathological or accidental reasons

• Acute – loss of enormous amount of blood from accidents / repeated blood donations / heavy menstruation in short period

• Chronic – Repeated and recurrent loss of blood either in small or large quantity – for example – worms, piles, fissures, menorrhagia, frequent menstruation, gastric erosions causing blood vomiting or bloody stool, cirrhosis of liver, peptic ulcer, intestinal bleeding disorders, etc.

Physiological changes (where requirement is more) – here body could not cope with the changes due to growth / puberty / menstruation / pregnancy / breastfeeding and so anaemia can occur.

Pathological diseases (where destruction is more, nutrients absorption is less and development of blood cells are retarded or suppressed) - Haemolytic anaemias / Sickle Cell Anaemias / thalassaemia / cancer / tumours / tuberculosis / rheumatic fever / rheumatoid arthritis / AIDS / kidney disorders (where essential hormone erythropoietin from kidney become insufficient to respond with low oxygen in blood i.e. hypoxia) / infections like malaria, sepsis, etc.

Psychological changes – Emotional upset, deep brooding, depression can cause low vitality and can interfere in the production of blood cells

Habits – may reflect in nutrition absorption i.e. drinking and drugs toxicity
Prolonged use of medicines / toxicity with chemicals - Antibiotics, anti-coagulants, NSAIDs such as like aspirin, ibuprofen, etc., when taken for a prolonged time may cause small haemorrhages and thus anaemia. Lead poisoning, mercury poisoning, arsenic poisoning, etc., can cause intestinal bleeding and can also hinder the production of hemoglobin leading to anaemia.

Symptoms – Anaemia usually presents a wide range of symptoms. Each and every patient may suffer from different symptoms according to their disease and intensity. The common symptoms are 

• Lack of concentration / getting irritated for trivial issues

• Feels exhausted with profound weakness

• Giddiness / fainting / blackouts / headaches

• Short shallow breath with requirement of deep breath often

• Weak rapid pulse and low blood pressure

• Palpitations and breathing difficulty on exertion or climbing stairs

• Chest pain / vague discomfort in chest on exertion

• Pallor of the skin / nails / mucous membranes of mouth

• Smooth glossy tongue with cracks or sore

• Cracks or sore in angle of mouth

• Tinnitus

• Loss of appetite

• Spoon shaped nails / Brittle nails

• Spleen enlargement

• Ankle oedema

• Poor growth 

Diagnosis – Other than history of complaints (disease history and treatment history) and physical examination of the patient with pulse, blood pressure, colour of the mucous membrane of mouth (especially under the tongue), colour of conjunctiva of eye (especially in lower part) and colour of the nails, analysing the blood count remains fundamental. It can provide lots and lots of information regarding complaints/ disease and plan of treatment. Advanced automatic blood counting machines give accurate, readily readable values for quick diagnosis. The essential tests to diagnose anaemia and to rule out other differential diagnosis are:

• Blood – Tc, Dc, ESR, Hb%, RBC’s WBC’s, PCV (packed cell volume), MCH (mean corpuscular haemoglobin), MCHC (mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration), MCV (mean corpuscular concentration), Reticulocytes, platelets, Serum ferritin, Bleeding time, Clotting time, etc.

• Urine – sugar, albumin, deposits, bile salts and bile pigments

• Stool – ova, cysts and for occult blood

• Barium meal x-rays – to rule out stomach and intestine disorders

• Gastroscopy / Colonoscopy – to rule out stomach and intestine disorders

• Biopsy – in extreme condition, bone marrow biopsy can be done to diagnose / rule out Aplastic anaemia and other bone marrow disorders.

• Whole body CT or MRI to rule out any pathology

• Rule out bleeding gums, piles, peptic ulcer, unnecessary drug intake, etc.

Complications – Since blood cells / haemoglobin are very vital, if anaemia is not cared for or treated properly with supplements or proper food intake, serious damage will often follow with loss of functions endangering life and sometimes even death can be rewarded. Commonly, anaemia gives angina (chest pain) with shortness of breath and palpitation creating fear for life.

Prevention – Caring equals curing. So to keep good health:

Take

• Healthy, nutrients-rich foods at regular intervals

• Plenty of fruits and vegetables

• Treatments for bleedings as early as possible i.e. for bleeding gums, piles, peptic ulcer, etc.

Avoid

• Unnecessary medications / drugs like NSAIDs / pain-killers

• Habits of smoking, drinking & chewing tobacco 

Do’s

• Monitor for anaemia at regular intervals

• Check blood pressure regularly

• Care for digestion & absorption especially if you have diarrhoea or constipation or had any previous abdominal surgery

Finally, it is well said that spend more money to have quality blood than to contaminate it with drugs or artificial supplements, i.e. eat and drink natural food well.

Self care – Generally, greens, spinach, beetroot, dates, fruits, turnip, carrots, etc., will be good for blood count. In case of deficiency of 

• Iron – take liver, meat, green vegetables, spinach, eggs, etc. Also it is better to take Vit C rich foods like potato, pepper, lime / sour fruits along with iron-rich diets, since iron is absorbed at its best with Vit C.

• Vit B12 – take milk, cheese, egg, meat, fish, etc

• Folic acid – take pulses, cereals, nuts, green cabbage, vegetables, fruits, etc

General treatment – Whatever may be the cause, the first line of treatment in Allopathy is usually with supplements like iron, folic acid, Vit C and Vit B12 (either in tablet form or injection as per condition or disease of the sufferer, i.e. if intestine absorption is poor, supplements will be given through injections). If it is a critical or emergency condition, then transfusion of blood (i.e. substitution) will be opted as early as possible after analysing compatibility. Blood can be transferred as a whole or in components as necessary.

Secondly, treatment will be planned after analysing the cause of the anaemia with all sorts of investigations. Dietary insufficiency will be treated with prolonged prescription of supplements with advice to take good nutritious diet. The response to oral drugs can be seen only after two weeks. In case of bleeding spots (leakage), treatment (sealing / healing either by medicines or surgery) will be opted accordingly (removal of uterus in heavy flow menstruation, spleen in case of tremendous destructions, haemorrhoids in case of recurrent bleeding, etc.). Antibiotics will be prescribed if there is any infection.

Unless otherwise, cause has been corrected, anaemia will never go off and often may worsen with time even with supplements or transfusion.

Hazards of supplements – Even though supplements can provide timely help, it alone cannot help in the long run. There are lots and lots of differences between man-made and nature-made vitamins and minerals in its absorption, action and quality. If you supplement what the body requires from artificial synthetic compounds, it is just like giving poor man money instead of giving him a job. What you give will be enough for him for that day only. You will have to give him again the next day. In fact, you form the habit of making him dependent on you. Likewise, routine supplement therapy spoils our digestion and our body by leading to dependency.

Supplements can also be harmful since they are highly concentrated and happened to be a selective intake. For example - increased iron intake for synthesis of haemoglobin can cause nausea, vomiting, constipation, diarrhoea, dark or black coloured stools, and abdomen disorders. Also it can cause zinc deficiency. Increased intake of vitamins can also cause overweight problems. Hazards due to transfusion are transmission of diseases, toxicity, allergic reactions, rarely air emboli, etc. 

Homeopathic approach – Caring for blood count is essential for life since whole life / health relies on it. With clear-cut causes like accidental bleeding, heavy menstruation, pregnancy, poor nutrition, the person can be treated accordingly with the prescribed essential supplements in the form of foods / tablets / tonics / injections and in case of critical condition blood transfusion may be a must. No one can deny this principle. But using supplements (in the form of tablets / tonics / injections) continuously without regular nutritious food to maintain blood counts / haemoglobin is not acceptable. In general, 50 per cent of anaemic patients can be cured with diet alone, 30 per cent may need supplements and medicines and 20 per cent may need blood transfusion and medicines.

Even though well substituted, if the cell activity is not capable of absorbing the same, the substitute will go waste and the cell will continue to be less active or diseased. Actually, everyone needs stimulation for good activity. Homeopathic medicines can tackle the complaint or disease without persistent usage by treating the root cause. Anaemia is an ongoing process of chronic fatigue. Complaints will creep up with time when not attended properly. So it is better to analyse the cause and treat the condition right to the requirement. To distinguish from other ways, Homeopathy can end the endless episode of anaemia by targeting reality. More specific the treatment is, the more effective the treatment will be.

Homeopathy can boost the nutrition absorption, cells production, control the destruction and can maintain stable levels. Homeopathic medicines commonly used in cases of anaemia are Acid phos, Acid picric, Acetic acid, Ars alb, Bryonia, Calc carb, Chinninum Ars, Crataegus China, Ferrum met, Ferrum phos, Ferrum acetate, Lecithinum, Lycopodium, Manganum, Nat mur, Pulsatilla, Thyroidinum, Zinc met, etc. To avoid anaemia in case of bleeding or bleeding diathesis (haemorrhagia), commonly used Homeopathic medicines are Bryonia, Crocus, Crotalus, Ferr met, Ficus, Hamemelis, Ipecac, Lachesis, Millefolium, Nat phos, Vipera, etc. These medicines should be taken under the advice and diagnosis of a Qualified Homoeopath.

(Disclaimer: The contents of this column are for informational purpose only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional healthcare advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of healthcare professional for any health problem or medical condition.)

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Published on Nov 20^th, 2006