Sickle Cell Anemia
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- SCD,
- sickle cell anemia,
- sickle cell disease
About this treatment
Also indexed as:
Crescent Cell Anemia, Sickle Cell Disease
What you need to know
Get support for sickle cell anemia by focusing on your unique nutritional needs. According to research or other evidence, the following self-care steps may help you manage this kind of chronic anemia:
- Fight back with fish oil
- Reduce the frequency of severe pain episodes by taking a daily fish oil supplement providing 33 mg of EPA and 23 mg of DHA for every 2.2 pounds of body weight
- Think zinc
- Under the supervision of a doctor, take a daily supplement of 100 mg of zinc, plus 2 mg of copper, to help prevent cell damage and speed healing of leg ulcers associated with sickle cell anemia
- Fill up on fluids
- Drink plenty of water and other fluids to maintain good circulation
- Take a test
- Have your blood homocysteine levels checked to find out if daily folic acid supplements of 1 to 4 mg are right for you, or to discover if you have a vitamin B12 deficiency that requires treatment
These recommendations are not comprehensive and are not intended to replace the advice of your doctor or pharmacist. Continue reading the full sickle cell anemia article for more in-depth, fully-referenced information on medicines, vitamins, herbs, and dietary and lifestyle changes that may be helpful.
About sickle cell anemia
Anemia is a deficiency of the oxygen-carrying capacity of red blood cells. Sickle cell anemia is an inherited chronic anemia in which the red blood cells become sickle or crescent-shaped. The symptoms of sickle cell anemia are caused by the clogging of small blood vessels by the sickle cells or by poor delivery of oxygen to the tissues due to the anemia itself.
A sickle cell crisis is a painful episode that occurs when the body becomes severely deprived of oxygen. The disease and the trait occur in people of African descent, as well as in people from Mediterranean countries, India, and the Middle East, but rarely in people of European descent.
Last Review: 01-21-2009
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