Can you die from low hemoglobin? If so, how low can it go?
It really depends on how fast the anemia developed. People can handle slow change a lot better than they handle rapid change. Who your hemoglobin levels drop slowly, your body compensates by increasing heart output, decreasing blood volume, increasing breathing capacity and respiratory rate, and adapting to a certain amount of fatigue. The lowest hemoglobin I have ever personally seen was 3.5, in a child with chronic bone marrow disease. He blood looked like strawberry KoolAid and you could see through it easily. And yet she was active and functional.Going from a normal value to anything like that quickly would kill a person.
What foods/medicines will increase hemoglobin level for a 45-year-old Indian woman?
Low hemoglobin levels due to iron deficiency: Can have:Leafy vegetables like spinach (palak)fenugreek leaves (methi), beans and lentils like masoor daal, chole, moong daal, toor daal, urad daal, rajmaAsparagus (shatwar) and sesame seeds (til)Grains like barley (jav), rice (chawal), semolina (sooji), millet (bajra) and maize (makai)dried fruits such as almonds (badaam), dried peaches or raisins (manuka). meat and fishIn case your hemoglobin levels are low despite consumption of these iron-rich foods, your body might not be able to absorb the available iron properly. So, here are some diet tips to increase iron absorption:Add dried herbs to your dietcoriander (dhania), spearmint (pudina), basil (tulsi), chervil (chevil), dried parsley (sukhe ajamoda), bay leaf (tejpatta).Another way to increase iron absorption is to minimise the intake of calcium rich foods like milk and cheese because they block the absorption of iron. Don’t drink too much of coffee, tea and alcohol.Avoid eating foods containing gluten like pastas and wheat productsSometimes, foods such as parsley (ajwain) that are rich in oxalic acid may also interfere with absorption of iron. Have them in limited quantities.Low hemoglobin levels due to vitamin C deficiency: Vitamin C helps the body to absorb iron from foods. Low haemoglobin levels due to deficiency of Vitamin C can be corrected by eating fruits like guava (peru/amrud), kiwi, papaya, oranges, strawberries and grapefruit. Add all fruits together to make a delicious fruit salad or make your mixed fruit juice.You can also obtain vitamin C from vegetables including capsicum (Simla mirch), broccoli (hara phool gobi), cabbage (Gobi), tomatoes and spinach (palak).Low hemoglobin levels due to folic acid deficiency: If your haemoglobin count is low because your body is not producing sufficient red blood cells, then you could be deficient in folic acid, a B complex vitamin that is required to make red blood cells.Sources of folic acid include lentils, dried beans, peas, Brussels sprouts (chota band gobi), banana, corn (makai), beets, pineapple and peanuts. Source: Health, Fitness, Beauty & Diet
Symptoms of low hemoglobin?
Low blood pressure and low hemoglobin are not the same. Low blood pressure means the blood in the arteries and veins is running at low pressure (just like tap running at low pressure). This may happen if the heart is not pumping the blood strong enough (like in many heart diseases), or the blood volume is inadequate such as when one lost blood through injury or one becomes severely dehydrated. The symptoms include dizziness and weakness. On the other hand a person with low hemoglobin has anemia. The blood does not contain enough hemoglobin or red blood cells - which means the blood is 'watery' or diluted. Symptoms of low hemoglobin include body weakness and easy tiredness. The skin may also look pale. Anybody with low hemoglobin or low blood pressure need medical attention.