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Can I Treat My Breastfed Baby's Anemia By Taking Iron?

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Posted on Fri, 4 May 2012
Question: 3 month old is borderline anemic. is this something i can remedy by adding iron to my diet? he is breast fed only, and dr. wrote prescription for iron supplement that he is to take with XXXXXXX juice. I dont want to give him juice....I think the sugar content is too high
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Answered by Dr. Jasvinder Singh (29 minutes later)
Hello,

Thanks for posting your query. Babies are born with iron stored in their bodies. Because they grow rapidly, infants and children need to absorb an average of 1 mg of iron per day. However breastfed babies need less, because iron is absorbed 3 times better when it is in breast milk.

Since your child is borderline anemia, so first of try fortifying your diet with iron XXXXXXX foods. You can have iron XXXXXXX foods like liver, lean red meats, beans like kidney, lima, navy, black, pinto, soy beans, and lentils, iron fortified whole grains, XXXXXXX vegetables like spinach, tofu, broccoli, swiss chard, asparagus, parsley, chicken, nuts, egg yolk and dry fruits.

If still the anemia does not improve then you can give the drops that your baby’s pediatrician has prescribed. It usually must be taken for as long as 3 months to rebuild the body's store of iron.

Hope this answers your query. If you have additional questions or follow up queries then please do not hesitate in writing to us. I will be happy to answer your queries.

Wishing you good health.



Note: For further queries related to your child health, Talk to a Pediatrician. Click here to Book a Consultation.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Answered by
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Dr. Jasvinder Singh

Internal Medicine Specialist

Practicing since :1998

Answered : 1578 Questions

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Can I Treat My Breastfed Baby's Anemia By Taking Iron?

Hello,

Thanks for posting your query. Babies are born with iron stored in their bodies. Because they grow rapidly, infants and children need to absorb an average of 1 mg of iron per day. However breastfed babies need less, because iron is absorbed 3 times better when it is in breast milk.

Since your child is borderline anemia, so first of try fortifying your diet with iron XXXXXXX foods. You can have iron XXXXXXX foods like liver, lean red meats, beans like kidney, lima, navy, black, pinto, soy beans, and lentils, iron fortified whole grains, XXXXXXX vegetables like spinach, tofu, broccoli, swiss chard, asparagus, parsley, chicken, nuts, egg yolk and dry fruits.

If still the anemia does not improve then you can give the drops that your baby’s pediatrician has prescribed. It usually must be taken for as long as 3 months to rebuild the body's store of iron.

Hope this answers your query. If you have additional questions or follow up queries then please do not hesitate in writing to us. I will be happy to answer your queries.

Wishing you good health.