What to eat for a child with anemia. Iron deficiency anemia in children: symptoms and treatment, nutritional features

Anemia, popularly called anemia, occurs in children during active growth due to changes in the skeletal system. Most often, this disease affects children under two years of age, as well as in adolescence. This disease manifests itself in paleness of the skin and mucous membrane. These manifestations indicate a violation of internal processes associated with an insufficient amount of hemoglobin. Hemoglobin is a blood protein rich in iron, responsible for attaching oxygen particles and transporting it through the circulatory system.

The culprit of the disease is poor nutrition or nutrition lacking the required amount of vitamins. But if anemia is diagnosed, then only special diets will not be effective. In such a situation, you have to take medications with a high iron content, prescribed by your doctor.

Products necessary for a child with anemia

The main, key approach is systematic and proper nutrition. First of all, you should contact a specialist who will help you choose the right list of food products for this disease.

An incorrectly selected diet is the cause of the disease, and changing it is a clear path to a speedy recovery.

Main components to pay attention to:

vitamin B 12;
iron;
chlorophyll.

There are various lists and diets that doctors prescribe for anemia, but not all of them are valid. An integrated approach to the selection of products that promotes the formation of red blood cells is important.

First of all, food should be prepared tasty and arouse appetite, since the caloric content of food for this disease should slightly exceed age norms. A complex of vitamins A, B, C will be an excellent helper in hematopoiesis. But the most important component, which will certainly lead to success, is the chlorophyll contained in greens.

Animals avoid this disease because they eat green plants, because everyone has repeatedly seen how cats or dogs eat green shoots, being predators. This program is laid down by nature, so why doesn’t a person follow this obvious instruction?

Some nutrition rules

Nutrition system for children with anemia:

Rules for feeding children

The first and basic rule from which all others are built is diet. implies that all sorts of “harmful things” like Coca-Cola, chips and other things will be excluded. The diet should last for a long time; a week or a month will not fix anything. It is better if a proper nutrition system accompanies the child throughout his life - this is not only the prevention and treatment of anemia, but also an excellent opportunity to live a little longer and better.

The next rule or principle is the daily routine. Whatever one may say, a healthy lifestyle depends not only on what we eat, but also on when we eat it, how many times a day, when we sleep and how much time we spend on it. Daytime naps are a great option for your baby, but they generally aren't suitable for everyone.

Sleep determines the time when the need for food comes, and therefore breakfast should not be late, just like dinner itself. It is impossible to give precise guidance to parents on organizing the child’s daily routine; everyone knows this aspect, but not everyone attaches special importance to this fact.

And, of course, frequent walks in the fresh air will be useful. Good metabolism in the body and absorption of necessary elements occurs with active rest. The more calories burned, the better, and being active in childhood contributes to better development of all functions and processes in the child’s body.

What not to eat if you have anemia

If so, then you will have to abstain from some foods. First of all, we are talking about food containing large amounts of calcium - it is this substance that, when consumed in large quantities, interferes with the processes of effective absorption of iron.

Doctor's advice: a child's diet should definitely be based on this fact. This is quite simple to implement - for example, it is better to give dairy products separately from iron-containing products, and in specific small portions.

Childhood anemia, among other things, limits the ability to eat fried and fatty foods. This is a prerequisite within the philosophy of proper nutrition. Of course, this does not mean at all that you need to feed your baby exclusively low-calorie foods - everything should be in moderation and harmonious. It is better not to include dishes with a high content of vinegar or brine in your child’s diet.– this product has a negative effect on the blood condition. Drinks with caffeine, carbonated sweet drinks - these should also not be abused. A balanced diet is the key to success in treating anemia in children.

Video about anemia in children

Products necessary for a child with anemia

The main, key approach is systematic and proper nutrition. First of all, you should contact a specialist who will help you choose the right list of food products for this disease.

An incorrectly selected diet is the cause of the disease, and changing it is a clear path to a speedy recovery.

Main components to pay attention to:

vitamin B 12;
iron;
chlorophyll.

Some nutrition rules

Nutrition system for children with anemia:

Rules for feeding children

What not to eat if you have anemia

Doctor's advice: a child's diet should definitely be based on this fact. This is quite simple to implement - for example, it is better to give dairy products separately from iron-containing products, and in specific small portions.

Video about anemia in children

Pediatrician Dr. Komarovsky tells more about the prevention and treatment of anemia in children:

Prevention of anemia in older children: therapeutic diet

If there is anemia or a sharp decrease in hemoglobin analysis, dietary correction of the pathology is important, taking into account the age and diet of the baby. It is important to provide iron from food sources even during the use of drugs and various therapeutic measures. Individual dietary products are needed in order to improve the absorption of iron, and it is not their quantity that is important, but their quality characteristics. The principles of constructing a therapeutic diet are:

Achieving maximum iron absorption from certain foods
Balance the intake of heme and ionized iron so that it is used as much as possible for the construction of hemoglobin
reduction in the diet of those components that impede or block the absorption of iron and its absorption from food
maintaining the physiological supply of all food nutrients during the treatment of anemia.
Providing the caloric intake required by age through food.

Table No. 11 anti-anemic

The basis of the diet for the treatment of anemia in children from 2-3 years of age is diet No. 11, with age-related adjustments and restrictions on some products. It is only important to use a version of this diet with an age-related increase in proteins necessary for the active growth and development of the child. But if the amount of hemoglobin is low, and anemia is diagnosed, the use of iron supplements is necessary against the background of dietary correction. Through nutrition, their absorption and tolerability can be significantly increased.

25/11/2015 00:30

Anemia is a disease that is diagnosed today every seventh resident of our country. At the same time, many do not even suspect that they have this problem, attributing the symptoms that appear to ordinary fatigue from everyday and work problems.

Indeed, anemia can easily be confused with physical and emotional fatigue, but in fact, it is most often itself a symptom of some other disease.

Anemia is characterized by a decrease in hemoglobin, a decrease in the number of red blood cells, and the development of oxygen starvation of the blood. And one of the main roles in the development of anemia is played by poor nutrition, for example, frequent lunches with unhealthy fast food and a lack of vitamins, micro- and macroelements in the dishes consumed.

What is iron deficiency anemia, and what role does hemoglobin play in the blood?

There are several types of anemia:

Scarce- occurs with a lack of vitamins, micro- and macroelements (most often iron), which play an important role in hematopoiesis.
Hemolytic- destruction, gluing of red blood cells due to serious poisoning with chemicals (poisons), genetic diseases, frequent severe stress, exposure to very low temperatures and other factors.
Sickle cell- mutation of red blood cells, the acquisition of irregularly shaped blood cells. This type is considered a hereditary disease.
Hypo- And aplastic- a severe type of anemia associated with impaired hematopoiesis in the bone marrow.
Acute and chronic posthemorrhagic- the result of large blood loss (wounds, bleeding).

Iron deficiency anemia (lack of iron)- the most common type of anemia in our region, and a general blood test will help diagnose it, which will indicate the level of hemoglobin.

It is the iron-containing protein hemoglobin that transports oxygen through the blood to organs and tissues in the human and animal body. If the level of hemoglobin decreases, inadequate nutrition of the cells occurs, resulting in oxygen starvation.

Note!

There are generally accepted indicators of hemoglobin norm:

For women– from 120 to 140 g/l, for men– from 130 to 160 g/l.
Children's norm hemoglobin depends on the age of the child. For example, in a newborn baby who is only 1-3 days old, hemoglobin normally ranges from 145 to 225 g/l, at the age of 3-6 months - from 95 to 135 g/l. Then, from 1 year to adulthood, the hemoglobin rate gradually increases and becomes the same as in adults.
For pregnant women In women, the norm of hemoglobin in the blood ranges from 110 to 140 g/l, that is, it can be reduced from the earliest stages, since intrauterine growth of the fetus always means a rapid consumption of iron and folic acid reserves.

Causes and symptoms of anemia

Let's find out why iron deficiency anemia occurs and how to eat right to increase your blood iron levels.

As a result of these and many other reasons, symptoms of anemia begin to appear, similar to ordinary daily fatigue.

Iron-rich foods - list

Eating the right foods rich in iron will help you get rid of iron deficiency anemia.

List of foods rich in iron

Animal origin:

Fish.
Cream.
Oil.
By-products - liver, heart, tongue, kidneys.

Plant origin:

Cereals - buckwheat, legumes.
Vegetables - tomatoes, beets, potatoes, herbs, carrots, bell peppers.
Fruits - pomegranate, pear, currant, apple, plums, apricots, quince, persimmon.
Berries - currants, blueberries, wild strawberries, strawberries.
Mushrooms.

Drinks:

Plum juice.
Tea with honey and lemon.
Grape-apple juice.
Tomato juice.
Carrot juice.
Beetroot juice.

Iron content in products (per 100 g):

72 mg – Beans
51 mg – Hazelnuts
45 mg – Oatmeal
37 mg – Skim milk cheese
31 mg – Buckwheat
29.7 mg – Pork liver
20 mg – Peas
19 mg – Brewer's yeast
16 mg – Sea kale
15 mg – Apples (dried fruit)
12 mg – Dried apricots
9 mg – Blueberry
9 mg – Beef liver
6.3 mg – Heart
5 mg – Beef tongue

It is possible and necessary to combat iron deficiency anemia not only with the help of medications. A balanced diet is very effective in this case - a diet rich in iron, vitamins, and microelements.

Interesting to know!

per day the human body should receive a minimum of food 20 mg iron.
Iron is better absorbed in the body if it is combined with foods rich in vitamin C. For example, you can eat porridge and fresh pomegranate, meat and juice together.

How to increase the hemoglobin level in a child?

It is imperative to combat iron deficiency anemia in children of any age. For example, in infants, a decrease in hemoglobin leads to oxygen starvation of the entire body, which has a depressing effect on the functioning of the baby’s nervous system and seriously affects his physical and mental development. As a result, the child may often cry, flinch, and be irritated.

Parents immediately panic, suspecting the presence of some kind of neurological disease, but first of all it is worth paying attention to the level of hemoglobin in the child’s blood.

With a healthy mother's lifestyle, anemia occurs extremely rarely in babies under 6 months of age, since the absorption of iron from mother's milk is much higher than from other products.

To cure iron deficiency anemia in a baby, it is necessary to balance the mother’s diet. If the baby has already been introduced to complementary foods, then you need to take care of the correct nutritional system. To do this, both the nursing mother and the child should consume buckwheat, meat, beets, apples and apple juice, pomegranate juice.

For children over 3 years old, normalizing their diet with foods containing iron is not difficult at all. At this age, you can eat almost everything, taking into account only individual intolerance to foods and allergic reactions.

How should pregnant and lactating women eat if they have anemia?

During pregnancy, a woman needs to make sure that her body receives enough vitamins, minerals and other useful substances so that there is enough of them for both herself and her unborn baby.

Since iron deficiency provokes a decrease in hemoglobin levels and, accordingly, leads to oxygen starvation, this negatively affects both the mother and the child.

What is especially scary is that the risk of fetal development slowing increases. This is why a pregnant woman needs to seriously monitor her diet. To do this, doctors recommend eating as many iron-containing foods as possible.

Nutritional features of expectant mothers:

Pregnant women should replace black tea with green tea - it promotes better absorption of iron.
To increase hemoglobin, pomegranate juice should be drunk in small quantities - excessive consumption can cause constipation.
A nursing mother, like pregnant women, should get enough iron from foods, since the baby will also receive it through breast milk.
If you have problems, such as diarrhea, discuss your diet with a nutritionist and doctor - specialists will be able to create a complete menu.

Prevention of anemia in patients with diabetes mellitus

In patients with diabetes, the kidneys are damaged, namely they produce the hormone erythropoietin. It, in turn, transmits signals to the red bone marrow, which then produces red blood cells. In sugar nephropathy, the cells that produce erythropoietin die, causing kidney failure and anemia.

Unfortunately, anemia is a very common phenomenon in patients with diabetes. But it can only be cured by taking medications containing erythropoietin, in combination with a balanced diet rich in vitamins and microelements.

To prevent anemia in patients with diabetes, it is worth following a diet high in iron and folic acid. To do this, eat buckwheat, legumes, vegetables, vegetable juices, persimmons, and pomegranates.

Recipes to increase hemoglobin levels in the blood

There are many recipes that help increase hemoglobin in the blood.

Today we will focus on the most effective:

We take half a kilogram of raisins, dried apricots, walnuts and prunes, as well as one lemon. We twist it all through a meat grinder, add approximately 350 g of honey. Place the resulting mixture in a tray or jar and consume 2 tablespoons 3 times a day before meals.
We prepare beetroot and carrot juice with honey every day. For this we need 50 g of beet juice, 100 g of carrot juice and 1 tablespoon of honey. All ingredients are thoroughly mixed and a delicious sweet drink is obtained. It is recommended to drink this juice in the first half of the day for better absorption of the vitamins it contains.
Half a glass of apple juice should be mixed with the same amount of cranberry juice. Add 1 tablespoon of beet juice to the resulting drink - and the iron-rich juice is ready! It is recommended to drink it at least 4-5 times a week.
Grind a glass of walnuts and half a glass of raw buckwheat with a coffee grinder until it becomes flour. Add 100 g of honey and mix thoroughly. The resulting mixture should be consumed 1 tablespoon 3 times a day before meals.
The simplest recipe that quickly increases hemoglobin is a drink consisting of equal parts of natural apple, carrot, pomegranate, beet and grape juices. You can add sweetness to the drink with 1-2 tablespoons of honey.

Prohibited foods for anemia: what to do to increase iron absorption?

Proper nutrition involves more than just eating iron-rich foods. It is also important to remember that there are a number of foods and drinks that slow down the absorption of iron. In principle, if you do not have allergies, you can eat almost anything, but when it comes to iron absorption, it is still better to avoid some foods.

Iron absorption is slowed down by:

Pastry products
Carbonated drinks with caffeine
Conservation
Vinegar
Alcohol
Calcium rich foods

Important to know! Strong alcoholic drinks and their various surrogate substitutes provoke the development of blood clotting disorder syndrome. They are harmful for a healthy person, and extremely dangerous for a patient with iron deficiency anemia.

What to do for better absorption of iron?

There are also a number of rules that promote better absorption of iron from foods:

Try to combine vegetables with meat and liver. Vegetables, especially beets and carrots, can start the process of regeneration of iron contained in meat.
Vitamin C accelerates the absorption of iron, so it is advisable to eat them together. For example, buckwheat with meat or vegetables with fish can be washed down with fresh orange juice.
Honey improves iron absorption. Doctors recommend consuming 50-70 g of this sweetness daily. It will not only help cope with anemia, but also strengthen the protective properties of the body as a whole.
Pear accelerates the process of restoring normal hemoglobin concentration in the blood. Doctors often recommend eating pears to patients with anemia, especially if medication treatment is ineffective.

All these simple rules will significantly improve the process of iron absorption by the body and help get rid of iron deficiency anemia in the shortest possible time.

Menu for 7 days

When creating a menu for the prevention and treatment of iron deficiency anemia, use the lists of permitted products, and also take into account individual tolerance.

Day 1:

Breakfast. Buckwheat porridge and tomato juice.
Dinner., a piece of boiled meat, pomegranate juice.
Dinner. Vegetable salad, berries.

Day 2:

Breakfast. Omelet with a piece of boiled meat or steamed fish.
Dinner. Bean puree, baked meat, beetroot and carrot juice.
Dinner . Buckwheat with beef liver, pomegranate.

Day 3:

Breakfast. Oatmeal with berries, green tea.
Dinner. Vegetable soup with chicken breast, carrot juice.
Dinner. Rice and baked fish, grape-apple juice.

Day 4:

Breakfast. Muesli and pomegranate juice.
Dinner. Pea soup with meat and tomato juice.
Dinner. Buckwheat with offal, vegetable juice.

Day 5:

Breakfast. with berries, fresh.
Dinner. Soup with offal, green tea.
Dinner. Mashed potatoes with meat, tomato juice.

Day 6:

Breakfast. Buckwheat with raisins, green tea.
Dinner. Vegetable stew, beef liver, carrot juice.
Dinner. Mashed potatoes, stew, fresh vegetable salad, pomegranate juice.

Day 7:

Breakfast. Muesli and green tea.
Dinner. Stewed vegetables, meat, pomegranate juice.
Dinner. Rice porridge with fish and fresh vegetable salad, grape and apple juice.

As you can see, nutrition for iron deficiency anemia can be not only rich, but also tasty. Follow the recommendations of nutritionists - and you will forget about such an unpleasant illness as anemia!

Nutrition for children with anemia is very important. Treating anemia without organizing proper nutrition is impossible.

They most often occur in children. Therefore, during the treatment process it is necessary to replenish the iron deficiency in the body and create its reserve.

Nutrition for children with anemia

For complete absorption of iron, it is necessary that the child’s diet contains complete and easily digestible proteins. And also, there were enough microelements. Not only iron, but also zinc, copper, cobalt, manganese - they all participate in hematopoiesis. And vitamins, especially vitamin C and B vitamins.

For a child of the first year and, especially, the first half of life, the main source of all these substances is mother's milk. In order for it to have the most complete composition, the mother’s diet must include meat (beef or veal), eggs, fish, vegetables: potatoes, cabbage, carrots, beets, and fruits: apples, pomegranate, black currants, lemons, kiwi, bananas. It is also very useful for a nursing mother to periodically take a complex of multivitamins and microelements for nursing mothers. For example, Vitrum prenatal.

It is known that artificial babies suffer from anemia more often than breastfed children. But modern adapted milk formulas are still close in composition to breast milk and are enriched with iron and microelements. Therefore, in the case of artificial feeding, you can feed the baby only with them. A bottle-fed child should not receive cow's milk, much less goat's milk, until the age of 1 year. Milk in large quantities interferes with the absorption of iron. And cow's milk protein is more difficult to digest and absorb, which leads to the development of anemia.

The procedure and timing of introducing complementary foods

Vegetables

If a child has anemia, it is definitely recommended as the first complementary feeding. With artificial feeding, it is allowed from 4 months, with breastfeeding - from 5 months. Cauliflower or broccoli is recommended as the first product. Next, gradually add zucchini, potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, etc., taking into account age recommendations for the introduction of vegetables. It is recommended to prepare puree only with vegetable broth. Do everything gradually; allow at least 5-7 days to introduce each new product. Start with 1-2 teaspoons, etc., take your time so as not to cause digestive upset or an allergic reaction in the child.

Fruits

Further, fruit purees and juices are included in the diet of children with anemia. The recommendations for them are the same. With artificial feeding from 4 months, with natural feeding from 5 months. It is better to try fruits and vegetables boiled for the first time, and only then fresh. For example, first add a green apple to the puree with boiled carrots or pumpkin (if the child is already used to them).

You should also start fresh juices and purees gradually with ½ tsp. And do not forget that the total daily volume of juice (fruit puree) is less than vegetable puree: up to 6 months, no more than 60 ml per day, up to 1 year, no more than 100 ml per day. Juices are introduced in the usual order for all children: green apple, carrot, pear, plum. And banana - as a puree. Juices are preferably freshly squeezed (not earlier than 5 months on artificial and 6 months on breastfeeding), especially in autumn and summer. In winter and spring - ready-made juices for baby food.

Porridge

You can start giving it from 6 months. And preference should be given to buckwheat and oatmeal, as they are the most healthy and rich in B vitamins and microelements. Prepare porridge with water, vegetable broth, breast milk or an adapted formula. It is strictly not recommended to cook porridge with cow's milk if you are anemic.

Meat

Be sure to introduce it into the child’s diet from 6 months. Preference should be given to beef. Meat is the main source of easily digestible iron in our diet. In addition, it contains complete proteins, vitamins and microelements. Previously, for anemia, it was recommended to introduce beef liver into the child’s diet. It is superior in iron content to meat.

But it is now believed that the animal’s liver accumulates substances harmful to health. Therefore, it is no longer recommended as a baby food product for children under 1 year of age. The exception is children with anemia. They introduce liver into their diet no earlier than 6 months, no more than once a week, no more than 50 g. There is also no need to get carried away with meat. Age standards must be observed. The volume of puree at 7 months is 30g, at 8 months - 50g, by 1 year - 70g.

From 7 months, be sure to start giving chicken egg yolk and fish. These are also sources of valuable protein and iron. But it is enough to give fish to a child with anemia once a week, because... meat in this case is more useful.

It is also necessary to start on time from 6-7 months, because... it is a source of protein.

And other fermented milk products can be postponed for a child with anemia until 1 year. Or until hemoglobin normalizes, especially while breastfeeding. The exception is when the child has dysbacteriosis or constipation. Kefir is limited to a volume of no more than 200 ml per day by year.

Other foods: cookies, bread, pasta will not bring any benefit to a child with anemia. Therefore, up to 1 year of age, they can not be included in the child’s diet.

Nutrition for children with anemia after one year

In the 2nd year of a child’s life, if possible, it is better to continue breastfeeding until hemoglobin normalizes. In this case, it is best not to give him cow's milk or kefir during this period. If a bottle-fed child develops anemia at 1 year of age. And he has not yet gotten used to the adapted milk formula; it is better to leave it in the child’s diet, instead of cow’s milk, until the hemoglobin level normalizes, or switch to the 3rd formula formula.

Milk

After a year, a child’s diet usually contains a lot of kefir or cow’s milk. If a child has anemia, milk is strictly limited! No more than 200 ml of cow's milk or kefir (kefir means any fermented milk products) per day. Moreover, the milk that is used to prepare the porridge is also taken into account. Therefore, you have to choose: porridge with milk or whole milk. The preferred porridges are buckwheat and oatmeal. It is recommended to give porridge to a child only once a day.

Meat and fish

A child's diet must include meat. The best is beef. This means meat, boiled or in the form of lean meat cutlets. But not sausages, sausages and sausages. The daily allowance for a portion of meat for a child 1-3 years old is 80 g, 3-7 years old - 100 g, over 7 years old 120-140 g. 1-2 times a week, meat in the child’s diet is replaced with fish.

2-3 times a week, 1 chicken egg is included in the diet: boiled or in the form of omelettes, casseroles.

Fruits and vegetables

Be sure to include fresh fruits and vegetables in your child’s diet. The amount of fresh fruits (juices) in the 2nd year of life is 150-200g, in the 3rd year 250g, from 3 to 7 years 350g, over 7 years 400g. Apples, pears, pomegranates, black currants, carrots, lemon, orange, kiwi, banana, etc. are also useful. Dried fruits are also useful: prunes. And over 3 years old dried apricots, raisins, dates, in the amount of 3-5 pieces of some kind 1. Or a set of different dried fruits. And also, walnuts - 2-3 pieces per day.

Boiled and stewed vegetables and cottage cheese are also useful. Vegetables should be different. Up to 3 years: 150 g potatoes and 250 g others. From 3 to 7 years 300g potatoes and 300g others (cabbage, carrots, beets, pumpkin, onions, sweet peppers, tomatoes). Children over 2 years old are recommended to include legumes in their diet. Especially green peas. And also herbs: parsley, dill, fennel.

Cheese, butter and vegetable oil, sour cream, black bread should be included in the child’s diet, taking into account age-related needs.

It is useful to include honey in your child's diet. But, if the child does not have allergic reactions to it. From 1 year to 1-2 teaspoons per day.

Nutrition for children with anemia in combination with other treatment methods

In addition to the diet for the treatment of anemia, it is very important to properly organize the child’s daily routine: walks, gymnastics, physical activity, diet. And of course, follow doctors’ recommendations for taking iron supplements and multivitamins.

Among multivitamin preparations, children under 1 year of age are most often prescribed multitabs drops and biovital gel. They are used in cases of a slight decrease in hemoglobin (106 - 119 g/l), for a course of 1 month, then either the hemoglobin is normalized or an iron supplement is prescribed.

Up to 2 years of age, iron preparations in drops are most often used: actiferrin, hemofer, etc. From 2 to 5 years the same drugs are in syrup, over 5 years in tablets. But you should not give iron supplements to your child before or immediately after cottage cheese, because Cottage cheese contains a lot of calcium, which can interfere with iron absorption. It is also not recommended to take these medications with milk. It is better to combine them with juices, fruit or vegetable purees.

Iron supplements and multivitamins should be given to a child only as prescribed by a doctor.

It's all about p nutrition of children with anemia.