Anemia Treatment

 - Ferrous Ascorbate Vs Ferrous Sulphate

Anemia is a simple condition of Iron deficiency in blood. To be more precise Anemia is decrease in number of red blood cells (RBCs) or less than the normal quantity of Hemoglobin in the blood. Because Hemoglobin (found inside RBCs) normally carries oxygen from the lungs to the capillaries, It's deficiency will leads to hypoxia (lack of oxygen) result in symptoms like weakness, Fatigue etc.

Recently I came across a story where doctors suggested a patient to have Ferrous Ascorbate. I went to pharmacy and found that it is quite a costly medicine. Then I started studying little bit about it, why Iron should be so costly.

Ferrous Ascorbate contains Iron salt as well as Ascorbic acid (which is Vitamin C) and Vitamin C act as catalyst in absorbing the iron. And Ferrous sulphate doesn't contain Vitamin C, which makes it little less effective. This is one of the main reason why Ferrous Ascorbate is costly though Ferrous sulphate is cheap.

So one simple thing can be done is, increase your Vitamin-C intake and take Ferrous Sulphate. To increase the Vitamin C, you can consume daily a Lemon, Aamla or Oranges, if you can't get that regularly, Ascorbic acid comes as chewable tablet also, like Limcee Chewable (500Gm) which comes only for 17-18 Rs for 10 tablets.

And usually both comes with Folic acid as a combination which is absolutely fine to take at any point of time, as Folic Acid is also a kind of Vitamin only.

During Pregnancy

It is absolutely safe to take any of the medicine.

Side Effects

Here is a little catch in this. Ferrous Ascorabate is known to have just a mild headache and chest pain, which can be considered as almost No side effect, though Ferrous sulphate can cause constipation and gastritis. So if you have constipation or gastritis related problem, do not go for Ferrous sulphate. But if you are healthy, there is no point in wasting extra money. One more thing Patients who are allergic to sulphur, should not take Ferrous sulphate as well.

Cost Comparison

Ferrous Ascorabate (Orofer Xt by Emcure) average cost 98 Rs for 10 tablets.

Ferrous Sulphate (Fesovit by GSK) average cost 40 Rs for 10 tablets + Limcee average cost 20 Rs for 10 tablets = 60 Rs for 10 table

Read More :- www.cgepn.com

HEMOGLOBIN

What to Expect After the Test

If you have abnormal hemoglobin levels, treatment will depend on the underlying disorder. Hemoglobin C disease is usually treated with folic acid supplements to help your body produce red blood cells normally. Sickle cell anemia may be treatable with a bone marrow transplant. Otherwise, your doctor will help you manage the disorder by preventing health crises.

If you have thalassemia, your doctor’s recommended treatment will depend on the nature and severity of the disorder