What is Iron Deficiency Anemia?
Anemia is the result of an individual being in a negative iron balance. The deficiency of iron over a long period of time will lead to an insufficient amount of iron going to bone marrow, which is where red blood cells are produced. Over a long enough period of time, people who are iron deficient will end up a lower than optimal concentration of hemoglobin, which is the iron-rich protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen to the tissues, and a lower number of red blood cells circulating in the bloodstream. Iron goes into all the tissues in the body and is required for functioning of basically all tissues because it’s essential for the production of the energy currency for cells. In order to have muscles contract or neurons fire or anything like that, cells need to expend chemical energy. What are some of the signs and symptoms of low iron status? What’s frequently mentioned is a feeling of lethargy and lack of energy. But it’s quite clear that, in the more severe stages of iron def
