How Anemia Affects The Psyche

Anemia, also known as anemia, also affects the psyche and can have far-reaching consequences.

Anemia is particularly common in women and leads to classic symptoms such as tiredness and exhaustion. However, it can also influence the psyche , although a connection is not always immediately apparent.

Iron deficiency anemia

Iron deficiency is one of the most common deficiency diseases in the world, particularly affecting young women before menopause.

Due to menstruation and pregnancy, they have a much higher iron requirement than men of the same age. They often pursue their own interpretations of healthy eating.

This creates malnutrition and malnutrition, which can trigger anemia.

But other diseases such as Crohn’s disease, chronic inflammation, cancer, kidney dysfunction or celiac disease can also trigger iron deficiency! The doctor should always clarify the cause of iron deficiency.

Many women are familiar with the classic symptoms of iron deficiency:

• fatigue
• exhaustion
• Listlessness
• paleness

However, anemia also shows symptoms that are less well known but also indicate a lack of iron in the body:

• Skin disorders
• Hair loss
• Brittle nails
• Torn corners of the mouth
• Increased susceptibility to infections
• Dry skin
• Difficulty concentrating
• Unstable psyche

We will go into exactly the last two points here. You can get to the bottom of an unstable soul!

Anemia affects the psyche

There are people who thought of themselves as suffering from depression, burn-out or other psychological problems that urgently needed treatment, but who in reality only had anemia.

A good doctor and psychologist will consider this option. If not, take matters into your own hands! In order to discover an iron deficiency, the ferritin value must be determined.

This can be arranged by the doctor, but there are also self-tests in the pharmacy that can be used to determine ferritin with a drop of blood.

The influence of iron on processes in our body is great, the psyche is directly influenced: Among other things, iron is involved in the formation of the messenger substance dopamine, which in turn is a messenger substance for the reward system, feelings of pleasure, motivation and drive.

The “happiness hormone” serotonin also needs iron in order to be formed in the first place!

Link between anemia and depression

There is increasing evidence that iron deficiency can also be responsible for depression. When evaluating statistical data, the following is particularly noticeable:

• Women are twice as likely to be depressed as men.
• Girls are more likely to develop depression after puberty (with the onset of menstruation, a triggering factor for iron deficiency).
• The more children women have, the greater the risk of depression (and the greater the likelihood of iron deficiency through childbirth).

• Many postpartum depression originate from anemia.
• Women who menstruate heavily are more likely to develop depression.

These facts were only collected through a simple analysis of statistical data and could be an important reference for the prophylaxis of depression, anxiety, postpartum depression, burnout or depressed mood.

Iron deficiency is therefore a condition that urgently needs to be remedied!

How can you get more iron?

In order to prevent anemia, the consumption of red meat is generally recommended, but it also works on a purely vegetable basis.

In order to make it easier for the body to absorb iron from plant sources, acids such as vitamin C, lactic acid or fruit acids help .

Unfortunately, there are also substances that inhibit iron absorption, such as phytates from legumes, cereals and nuts, but also tannins from tea or coffee and calcium compounds, for example from dairy products.

Vegetarians and vegans should therefore always make sure to combine meals with a source of acid in order to increase bioavailability.

If in doubt, a glass of juice or a portion of fruit, such as an apple, is sufficient.

Whole grains, especially oats, millet, amaranth and legumes are particularly good sources of vegetable protein. Lentils and soy as well as oil seeds such as sesame, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds are particularly recommended.

But always in combination with fruit acid, vitamin C or lactic acid, for example from foods fermented with lactic acid such as sauerkraut.

A healthy, balanced diet consisting of mixed foods with whole grain products, fruit and oilseeds not only ensures healthy blood values ​​with regard to anemia, which can prevent other diseases .

Any form of diet, FdH or other nutritional philosophies always carries the risk of an undersupply with essential nutrients.

With far-reaching consequences for physical and mental health, as we have hopefully been able to show using the example of iron. So take care!