Low hemoglobin levels can be caused due to numerous reasons. The most common of which include nutritional deficiencies, periods, pregnancy, certain cancers and bone marrow or kidney related disorders. You all might be very familiar with the term ‘anemia’. This term is thrown around in households for anyone who looks pale. Although it is not a completely wrong to say so, anemia normally includes a series of symptoms such as lethargy, easy fatigue, shortness of breath, pale skin, loss of appetite and so on. So what causes anemia? A decrease in the hemoglobin level decreases its oxygen carrying capacity and presents with all the symptoms. This can be seriously dangerous for the body as deoxygenation of any organ can cause severe damage and even loss of function
If your blood report says you have low hemoglobin your doctor will prescribe iron supplements which is the main constituent of blood. Although this should rectify the problem, it is necessary to make certain lifestyle and dietary changes that will not only increase your blood hemoglobin levels but also make you more active and healthy. 10 natural ways by which you can achieve this are given below.
1. Berries and Pomegranates
Red is the color of blood (duh) and interestingly all foods that are red in color help increase hemoglobin. It is said that eating an entire box of berries is just as beneficial as putting a pint of blood in your body. This includes strawberries, cherries, raspberries etc.
2. Watermelon
This amazing thirst quenching gift from heaven has advantages other than being delicious. It is especially beneficial during pregnancy as the mother’s hemoglobin need increases.
3. Beetroot and Broccoli for Hemoglobin
For beets, the rule of the red applies again. It is said that a cup of sliced beets can give you up to 1.1mg of iron. That is why athletes are adviced to consume beet root juice regularly. Broccoli is rich in Vitamin C which is a very important for the absorption of iron from the gut.
4. Yogurt
This contains calcium that is very important for an efficient utilization of iron from the foods that we have consumed. However, for maximum benefit, dairy foods should be taken with vitamin C rich foods as they can have an opposite effect if taken in large doses by themselves.
5. Pumpkin
Pumpkin is a vitamin C rich food. Pumpkin seeds are found to be the best source of protein and iron in vegetarians who have no meat consumption.
6. Green Leafy Vegetables
I find that every article I write about healthy eating I spend hours and hours writing about green vegetables. So let’s just establish that they are good for us and start eating them, okay? Besides their numerous other benefits they have large quantities of folate which is extremely important for the normal formation of blood cells and in turn can help carry larger amounts of hemoglobin in the blood. They more specifically include spinach, fenugreek leaves and tomatoes.
7. Vitamin C Rich Foods
These include oranges, guava, kiwi, papaya, grape fruits and strawberries
8. Legumes
Increasing the daily intake of beans, peas and lentils can do wonders for our iron levels.
9. Dates
Dates are packed full of energy. Along with iron, they contain potassium, calcium, magnesium, Vitamin A and Vitamin B. Having dates on an empty stomach can be extremely beneficial.
10. Breakfast Cereals
These are a great source of folic acid. Now, I don’t mean those sugar laden caption crunch or fruit loops. Who knew picking a healthy breakfast cereal can have so many benefits!
