WHAT IS ANEMIA, EXACTLY?

Anemia is defined as a lack of healthy red blood cells in the body. Red blood cells are responsible for providing adequate oxygen to all tissues of the body. The presence of hemoglobin, an iron rich protein, is what makes a red blood cell, well, red, as opposed to white. Hemoglobin and therefore red blood cells are produced in the bone marrow of our body, and require adequate amounts of iron, folate, and Vitamin B-12 to be present in our system for this production. Basically Iron/Folate/Vit.B-12 = Hemoglobin = red blood cells. The body is an efficient, conservative organism, and if we are not providing enough of these nutrients to our body, it will limit the production of healthy red blood cells.

The most common cause of anemia is simple: low iron levels. Low levels of Folate and B-12 contribute as well. There are other less common causes such as inflammatory diseases, blood diseases, and auto-immune diseases, but for the purpose of this article we will address the role of nutrition in the anemic condition.

HOW DO I KNOW IF I AM ANEMIC?

An easy blood panel test from your healthcare provider can give you a big clue. Other clues are the following symptoms:

Chronic fatigue
Weakness of body, will, motivation
Pale complexion with dark circles under eyes
Cold hands and feet
Frequent headaches
Dizziness, lightheadedness
Irregular heartbeat and chest pain

WHAT DO I DO ABOUT IT?

I am so glad you asked! If you choose to see a medical doctor, they will most likely recommend iron supplements and a change in diet. In more extreme cases a disease may need to be addressed, and they may offer you invasive procedures. These things can all be effective, however there are quite a lot of nuances to increasing the amount of Iron in your body, and many supplements are dangerous due to their lack of regulation and frequent adulteration.

The Green World of plants and Animal foods offer us many ways to nourish ourselves back into health and bloom our way out of the wilt of an anemic constitution. Anemia can lead to heart problems and a serious decrease in the quality of life due to fatigue, so it is worth taking the time to address it. In this article I offer you my perspective on the vague “change in diet” recommendation and offer you specific foods and how to prepare them to maximize nutrient absorption. We will also discuss various herbs that can help quite literally “build your blood” with Iron, minerals, and vitamins, as well as some affirmations you can incorporate into your life to change your mental ruts around nourishment.

Nourishing Foods to Build your Blood

Sources of Iron:

Dark Leafy Greens, cooked for at least an hour*: Kale, Collards, Nettle, Dandelion Leaf, Amaranth, Lamb’s Quarter, Plantain. Eat every day, or something close to it. *It is important to cook your greens well in order to break down the tough cell wall of the plants and make the nutrients bio-available for your non-ruminative digestive system.
Seaweeds: Hello, sushi! If you are a sushi lover, go for it. The combination of seaweed and fatty fish like salmon and tuna are a win-win for you. I also love to cook seaweed in my rice, make Dashi broth, and use seaweed in soups. You can grind seaweed and combine it with sesame seeds and salt to make a tasty seasoning for your foods.
Meats: If you are severely or chronically anemic, please consider eating some organ meats ASAP. Other animal meats high in iron are beef. You don’t need to eat a lot, and quality matters. Go for the higher priced organic and grass-fed meats from as local a source as you can find, and eat 1-2x a week, or as often as you crave it. Soups are a great way to replenish your system. Bone broths are excellent for re-building your blood.
Beans, Peas & Lentils: Get those legumes in! Try using dried beans or lentils and cooking them yourself, but canned is better than not at all. Eat Beans and lentils several times a week, cooked well with herbs and spices that please you.
Whole Grains: Brown Rice, Whole Wheat, Oats, Quinoa, take your pick! Just get them in! 2-3 servings of ½ cup a day is wonderful. Our ancestors have been relying on grains for thousands of years, so seek what they would have eaten. Refined grains are not only useless nutritionally, but are harmful to your system, so, replace this for that.

Sources of Folates:

Dark Leafy Greens
Local fruits in season. Juices are fun, in small quantities and from sources that are “just juice”, no added sugar. I drink a 1/2 cup of juice diluted in bubbly water. Yum!
Beans & Lentils (are you noticing a pattern here?)
Kidney beans
Whole grains

Sources of B-12:

Dairy products. Only Organic, full-fat, as raw as you can find it. Cheap cheese and processed milk is upsetting to the system. Fresh whole milk, yogurt and cheeses are wonderful. Make friends with a dairy farmer!
Organ Meats
Red Meats
Seafood: Salmon, Tuna, mussels
Eggs. Organic, certified humane. If you are sensitive to eggs, try boiling or poaching them, this kills the protein that some people have a reaction to.

A note on animal products:

Ethics are important. Using your voice as a consumer to buy high-quality animal products pushes the market in that direction far more than not buying them at all, in the same way that voting for the people and measures you want influences the system far more than not voting at all. Food for thought!

To summarize, the foods that will provide you with the most relevant nourishment and maximize your investments of time and money into your meals are:

Cooked dark leafy greens
Red Meats, Organ Meats
Whole grains
Beans, Peas, and Lentils

Herbal Remedies To Build Your Blood:

Stinging Nettle* (Urtica dioica)

Nettle is one of the most renowned herbs for building the blood. It provides more Iron to the system than most other foods, and provides a host of other minerals and vitamins to your body. Nettle as a Nourishing Herbal Infusion has shown itself to be effective in anemia that does not respond to other ways to raising iron levels

Nourishing Herbal Infusion. Steep 1 oz of dried nettle leaf into 1 quart of just boiled for 4-8 hours or overnight. Sip throughout the day. Do this 3x per week or more for 3-12 months to see an increase of Iron in your system. For more information on Nourishing Herbal infusions, click here.
Nettle Soup. Boil harvested leaf tops of Stinging Nettle with Mushrooms, Astragalus Root, or any other vegetable of your choice to make a nourishing soup. Excellent with a scoop of Miso in your bowl.

Yellow Dock Root (Rumex spp.)

Yellow Dock is a prolific weed that loves waterways. Find it in fields, creeksides, garden beds, or near groundwater. The root is full of Iron and regular use has been shown to increase the Iron levels in the blood 2x faster than Iron supplements.

Vinegar: Fill a jar with fresh chopped root that has been washed. Pour pasteurized Apple Cider Vinegar up to the top. Cap with a non-metal lid and let lie for 6 weeks. Strain and drink 1 tablespoon per day until iron levels increase and remain steady.
Tincture: Same method, but with vodka. Drink 5-20 drops per day diluted in water.

Astragalus Root* (Astragalus membranaceus)

Astragalus builds the blood as well as nourishing the immune system. The medicinal constituents of this herb are best extracted with hot water. A supreme soup herb.

Dried Root: Throw in 3-5 strips of dried astragalus root into soups, cooked grains, or anything else you cook in water for more than 30 minutes.
Powdered root: Mix into hummus, dips, yogurt, cereal, etc. for an extra boost.
Tea: Decoct dried root by simmering 1 tablespoon per 1 cup of water in a small pot. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, then cover and steep for 15 minutes more. Drink 1-3x per day for several weeks as a tonic.

Affirmations for Accepting Nourishment

Health is wholeness. Health is not gained, earned, or deserved. It is a state of existence as natural as breathing.

Wellness bubbles up from a source deep inside of you, it is not given to you by an outside source. Feed this source.

Your blood is your life source. Your life source is never-ending. You do not need to prove that you deserve to be alive. You simply need to accept that you are, indeed, ALIVE.

“I accept abundant nourishment as my holy human right”

“I love to nourish myself”

“I gift myself nourishment freely”

“I accept rest as necessary and nourishing”

“I am grateful to be alive”

And so, I leave you with this.

May it be useful for you, and know it is offered with love.

In Love,

Susan Marie

Please note that I am not a certified medical professional, and that this information is provided for educational purposes only and is to be taken at your discretion. You are responsible for any foods or substances you choose to use, and if in doubt should consult your certified health professional of choice.

Nourishing your Anemia: Herbal Remedies and Foods for Building the Blood