Anemia facts for kids
Anemia happens when your blood doesn't have enough healthy red blood cells. These cells are super important because they carry hemoglobin, which is a special protein that helps move oxygen all around your body. If you don't have enough red blood cells or hemoglobin, your body might not get all the oxygen it needs to work properly. This can make you feel tired and weak.
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What Causes Anemia?
Anemia can happen for many different reasons. Doctors often group them based on how the red blood cells look under a microscope.
Small Red Blood Cells (Microcytic Anemia)
Sometimes, red blood cells are smaller than they should be.
- Iron Deficiency Anemia: This is the most common type of anemia. It happens when your body doesn't have enough iron. Iron is a key ingredient your body needs to make hemoglobin. You can get iron from foods like red meat, beans, and leafy greens.
- Hemoglobinopathies: These are rarer problems where there's something wrong with the hemoglobin itself.
- Sickle-Cell Disease: In this condition, red blood cells are shaped like a "C" or a sickle, instead of being round. These sickle cells can get stuck in blood vessels, causing pain and other problems.
- Thalassemia: This is another condition where the body doesn't make enough normal hemoglobin.
Normal-Sized Red Blood Cells (Normocytic Anemia)
In some cases, the red blood cells are the right size, but there aren't enough of them.
- Sudden Blood Loss: If someone loses a lot of blood quickly, like from an injury, they can become anemic.
- Anemia of Chronic Disease: This can happen if someone has a long-term illness, like a kidney disease or an inflammatory condition. The illness can affect how the body makes red blood cells.
- Aplastic Anemia: This is a serious condition where the bone marrow, which is like the factory for blood cells, stops making enough new red blood cells.
Large Red Blood Cells (Macrocytic Anemia)
Sometimes, red blood cells are larger than normal.
- Megaloblastic Anemia: This type of anemia happens when your body doesn't have enough of certain vitamin B12 or folic acid (or both). These vitamins are very important for making healthy red blood cells.
- Pernicious Anemia: This is a special type of anemia where your body has trouble absorbing vitamin B12 from food. It's an autoimmune problem, meaning your body's defense system mistakenly attacks healthy cells in your stomach that help absorb B12.
Mixed Anemia (Dimorphic Anemia)
Dimorphic anemia means someone has two different types of anemia at the same time. For example, they might have both small, pale red blood cells and large red blood cells. This can happen if someone is low on both iron and vitamin B12 or folic acid. It can also happen after a blood transfusion.
Images for kids
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Figure shows normal red blood cells flowing freely in a blood vessel. The inset image shows a cross-section of a normal red blood cell with normal hemoglobin.
See also
In Spanish: Anemia para niños
