IRON DFICIENCY ANEMIA

Anaemia is a condition where the amount of haemoglobin in the blood is below the normal level, or there are fewer red blood cells than normal.

Symptoms of iron deficiency anaemia

• shortness of breath (dyspnoea)

• changes in your appearance, such as a pale complexion and dry nails

What causes iron deficiency anaemia?

• non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)

• a peptic ulcer

• stomach cancer or bowel cancer

• heavy periods

• pregnancy - because your body needs extra iron for your baby

Treating iron deficiency anaemia
Iron-rich foods

• dark-green leafy vegetables, such as watercress and curly kale

• beans

• nuts

• meat

• dried fruit

• tea and coffee

• calcium, found in dairy products such as milk

• antacids (medication to help relieve indigestion) 

Diagnosis 

• The diagnosis of iron-deficiency anemia will be suggested by appropriate history (eg, anemia in a menstruating woman or an athlete engaged in long-distance running), the presence of occult blood (ie, hidden blood) in the stool, and often by other history.  
• Body-store iron deficiency is diagnosed by diagnostic tests, such as a low serum ferritin, a low serum iron level, an elevated serum transferrin and a high total iron binding capacity . 
• Serum iron levels (ie, iron not part of the hemoglobin in red cells) may be measured directly in the blood, but these levels increase immediately with iron supplementation (the patient must stop supplements for 24 hours), and pure blood-serum iron concentration in any case is not as sensitive as a combination of total serum iron, along with a measure of the serum iron-binding protein levels (TIBC).
• The ratio of serum iron to TIBC (called iron saturation or transferrin saturation index or percent) is the most specific indicator of iron deficiency, when it is sufficiently low. The iron saturation (or transferrin saturation) of < 5% almost always indicates iron deficiency, while levels from 5% to 10% make the diagnosis of iron deficiency possible but not definitive. Saturations over 12% (taken alone) make the diagnosis unlikely. Normal saturations are usually slightly lower for women (>12%) than for men (>15%), but this may indicate simply an overall slightly poorer iron status for women in the "normal" population.

source: 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_deficiency_anemia
             2. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Anaemia-iron-deficiency-/Pages/Introduction.aspx