Essential Facts About Iron-Deficiency Anemia and Your Heart

If you have a health condition that affects your heart, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, coronary artery disease, or heart failure, then it’s important to be aware of another condition that can affect your heart health: iron-deficiency anemia.

Iron-Deficiency Anemia Symptoms Vary

The symptoms of iron-deficiency anemia are caused by inadequate oxygen in the body’s tissues, says Daniel A. Landau, MD, a hematologist and oncologist at Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. “It’s an issue of supply and demand,” he says, adding that fatigue is the most common symptom, reported by about 90 percent of people that he sees with the condition.

Other common symptoms, Dr. Landau says, include dizziness or fainting and lack of mental sharpness. In some cases, people experience the urge to eat unusual things, like dirt or chalk. This is a condition known as pica.

But Landau emphasizes that iron deficiency isn’t usually an isolated condition. “We don’t normally become iron-deficient just because we’re not eating the right diet,” he says. “Normally, it’s because of blood loss or some other issue” that may require urgent treatment, such as gastrointestinal bleeding or even colon cancer.

Iron Deficiency Anemia and Heart Health

“I think the link between iron deficiency and heart health was very poorly understood until recently,” says Landau. But studies in recent years have shed some light on this relationship.

Iron-Deficiency Anemia Screening and Treatment

If you’re experiencing any of the symptoms associated with iron-deficiency anemia, it’s crucial to see your doctor to find out what’s going on.

“The first screening test is just to figure out whether you are anemic or not,” says Landau. This will look to see if you’re lacking adequate red blood cells. If you are anemic, your doctor will try to establish whether it’s due to iron deficiency or some other cause, like a vitamin deficiency, underlying chronic inflammation, kidney disease, or poor thyroid function. Possible loss of blood from your gastrointestinal tract may also be investigated.

If you’re found to be iron-deficient, Landau says, your doctor will most likely start you on an oral supplement, which may be iron tablets or simply a multivitamin containing iron, depending on the amount you need.

Landau notes that if a person doesn’t tolerate oral iron supplements well and experiences nausea, constipation, or diarrhea, that person may also be a candidate for IV iron, even if they’re not severely anemic. “Intravenous iron works fantastically,” he says, “if the patient can’t tolerate oral iron for any reason.”

While an iron-rich diet may help you maintain healthy iron levels, if you’re already anemic, Landau points out that dietary changes alone are unlikely to do you much good. “Diet, by itself, is an inefficient way to fix the iron issue,” he says.

Proper treatment of iron deficiency, according to Landau, can make a big difference for people with heart conditions. “If you fix the iron deficiency,” he says, “they usually feel better.”