Natural Health Blog | Dietary Supplements & Anemia

Anemia and Procrit Side Effects

Question:

What is your opinion of the drug Procrit for anemia? What else do you recommend?

Answer:

Procrit, as is true of most medications, is not without side effects.

* http://www.rxlist.com/procrit-drug.htm#ad

* http://www.drugs.com/procrit.html

For obvious legal reasons I cannot diagnose or prescribe for specific conditions -- merely provide information. With that in mind...

There are many forms of anemia, each with its own cause. Anemia can be temporary or long-term, and it can range from mild to severe. In other words, looking for magic bullet supplements is a hit or miss proposition. You really need to think broad spectrum.

For example, it's not just B12 you want to worry about. B6 plays an important role too. When you supplement, make sure you get the full spectrum of B's along with the B12.

Don't forget the essential fatty acids. Supplementation with a good source of Omega-3 fatty acids can also be helpful.

Getting sufficient protein can also be helpful.

As for iron, in some cases supplementing with it may indeed not address the primary factor -- but in some cases it may. And even when it doesn't address the primary factor, it still may dramatically improve the condition while you are working on addressing the underlying causes. If you do supplement with iron, iron protein succinylate is probably the most bio-available form. Studies have shown it can increase red blood cell count by as much as 23% in 60 days.

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