Vitamin-B6-Deficiency Anemia

An anemia in which both the number of red cells and the amount of hemoglobin are decreased has been produced in infants and adults by diets deficient in vitamin B6. This form of anemia, which cannot be corrected by iron, is now found to be common in men, women, and children, and especially in women during pregnancy. Since the cause of such anemia is usually unrecognized, it sometimes persists ten years or longer; and such patients, invariably loaded with iron, often become so ill that transfusions are necessary. When 100 milligrams of vitamin B6 were given daily to these individuals, the red cells increased markedly and the hemoglobin rose quickly from 8.5 to 13 grams, but the anemia recurred as soon as the vitamin was withdrawn.

The tragedy of loading such persons with iron is that, when vitamin B6 is under supplied, iron absorption becomes so excessive that it damages the tissues, causing the formation of scars which readily become calcified. This condition appears to be identical to a fatal iron-storage disease, siderosis or hemosiderosis, which has been rare but is rapidly becoming more common. In experimental siderosis, as much as 18 times more iron than normal is held in the body! The iron is reduced if vitamin B6 is given, but if withheld, death results. Under normal circumstances iron is absorbed only as needed.

Since vitamin B6 and magnesium go together like salt and pepper, it is not surprising that anemia has been produced in volunteers (adult men) by a diet lacking magnesium. This anemia was quickly connected soon after the nutrient was allowed.

Folic-Acid-Deficiency Anemia

An under supply of the B vitamin folic acid causes a "large-cell" anemia common among pregnant women, individuals lacking stomach acid, infants and children following infections, and persons who have a high intake of refined foods, especially alcohol. This form of anemia, repeatedly produced in humans, is associated with a sore mouth and tongue and perhaps a grayish-brown skin pigmentation. It cannot be corrected by iron, but within a few hours of adding 1 to 5 milligrams of folic acid to a diet deficient in it, the bone marrow starts producing new blood cells, and the anemia quickly disappears.

Such anemia, though corrected by folic acid, which is rich in liver, kidneys, chicken giblets, and cooked green leafy vegetables, quickly recurs unless vitamin C is adequate. The vitamin C not only increases iron absorption and the rate of hemoglobin production, but also is necessary before folic acid can be changed into a usable form. Rats, which synthesize their own vitamin C, nevertheless recover from folic-acid-deficiency anemia much faster when given large amounts of both vitamins C and E.

Sickle-cell anemia occurs in persons who appear to have an unusually high requirement for folic acid.8ri. 86 Such patients have improved when given 5 milligrams or more of this vitamin daily.

Vitamin-E-Deficiency Anemia

When vitamin E is under supplied, not only are iron absorption and hemoglobin formation impaired, but also the essential fatty acids forming part of the cell structure are so altered by oxidation that cells break down, a destruction that goes on uniformly throughout the body. The speed with which the red blood cells are destroyed when exposed to oxygen, however, has become the test for vitamin-E deficiencies. If vitamin E is under supplied, so many red cells spill their contents into the blood that the anemia is just as severe as if these cells had never been produced. Furthermore, the life span of the remaining blood cells is markedly reduced.

Anemia resulting from a lack of vitamin E has been produced in young men voluntarily deprived of this vitamin is and in almost every species of animal. Biopsies of the bone marrow of anemic babies, adults, and especially pregnant women showed gross abnormalities, but these completely cleared up in five days after 280 milligrams of vitamin E were given daily; and the anemia quickly disappeared. The anemia of sprue, as well as that common in hemophiliacs, has also been connected by vitamin E. Generous amounts of vitamin C, which decreases the vitamin-E requirement, help to alleviate this anemia, but no amount of iron can connect it. In fact, most forms of iron medication destroy vitamin E.

Because premature births are frequently the result of too little vitamin E during pregnancy, such infants are born especially deficient in this vitamin and are particularly susceptible to anemia. When exposed to the high oxygen content of ordinary air, their blood cells break down so rapidly that, unable to excrete the blood pigments quickly enough, they frequently develop jaundice from pigments deposited in the tissues. This occurrence is extremely common. It has caused hundreds of babies to become blind, and is still a major factor in infant mortality. Yet neither pregnant women nor premature infants are customarily given vitamin E; and the babies are rarely allowed breast milk, which, if from a healthy mother, usually contains 20 times more vitamin E than cow milk.

Since vitamin E has a remarkable power of decreasing the body's need for oxygen, the symptoms of any anemia, such as fatigue and shortness of breath stemming from oxygen deprivation, are often alleviated when vitamin E is taken. Because "extraordinarily large amounts" of vitamin E are required when oils are used and oil consumption is increasing, more anemia resulting from a lack of vitamin E can be expected.

About The Author
David Crawford is the CEO and owner of a Male Enhancement Pills company known as Male Enhancement Group which is dedicated to researching and comparing male enhancement products in order to determine which male enhancement product is safer and more effective than other products on the market. Copyright 2009 David Crawford of Male Enhancement Pills This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.