How to Increase Red Blood Cells

Weakness and lethargy can be signs of anemia – red blood cell (RBC) deficiency. A diet lacking in iron and other minerals and nutrients is the most common cause of this condition. Low blood hemoglobin levels and low red blood cell counts are two signs of an imbalanced diet and nutrient deficiencies, malnutrition, and diseases like malignant leukemia (in some cases). if the white blood cell count is too much while the red blood cell count is too low.

Table of Contents

Change your diet

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Add iron-rich foods to your diet to improve nutrition. This helps the body recover and compensate for the lack of nutrients. Increasing iron-rich foods every day will help increase the number of red blood cells in the body. Iron is an essential part of red blood cells and hemoglobin because iron helps carry oxygen to different parts of the body. Iron also helps excrete CO gas when exhaled. Iron-rich foods include: ^{[1] X Research Source}

Legumes/vegetables
lentils
Green vegetables like kale and spinach
Dried fruit, including prunes
Organ meat like liver
Yolk
Red meat
Raisins
- If consuming iron-rich foods every day is not enough, you can take an iron supplement that helps increase red blood cell production. Oral iron supplements are available in doses of 50-100 mg and can be taken 2-3 times per day.

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Copper supplement. Copper is another essential mineral that helps cells access the element iron in the chemical form needed by red blood cells in iron metabolism. Copper is found in poultry, shellfish, liver, whole grains, chocolate, beans, berries, and nuts. Copper supplements are also available as 900 mcg tablets and can be taken once daily.

Adults need 900 mcg of copper per day. During the reproductive period, women have periods, so they need more copper than men. Women need 18 mg of copper per day, while men only need 8 mg.

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Add enough fpic acid. Fpic acid or vitamin B9 supports normal red blood cell production. A significant fpic acid deficiency can lead to anemia.

Cereals, breads, dark green leafy vegetables, legumes, lentils and nuts contain large amounts of fpic acid. Fpic acid is also available in supplement form – doses of 100 to 200 mcg, which can be taken once daily.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommends a daily supplement of 400 mcg of fpic acid for regular menstruating adult women. On the other hand, the US National Institutes of Health recommends a supplemental dose of 600 mg of fpic acid per day for pregnant women.
In addition to supporting healthy blood cell production, fpic acid also plays an important role in the production and regeneration of the cell’s basic building blocks for normal DNA function.

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Vitamin A supplement (Retinp). Vitamin A supports red blood cell stem cell growth in the bone marrow by ensuring that developing red blood cells have access to adequate amounts of iron needed for hemoglobin production.

Sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, dark green leafy vegetables, sweet red bell peppers and fruits like apricots, grapefruit, watermelon, plums and cantaloupe are all rich in vitamin A.
The recommended daily dose is 700 mcg of vitamin A in women and 900 mcg of vitamin A in men.

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Supplement with vitamin C. Supplementing with vitamin C at the same time as an iron supplement provides a dual effect. This is because vitamin C enhances the body’s ability to absorb iron, thereby increasing the production of red blood cells.

Supplementing with 500 mg of vitamin C per day along with iron will help speed up the body’s absorption of iron, increasing the efficiency of red blood cell production. However, be aware that high doses of iron supplements can be harmful to the body.

Lifestyle change

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Daily exercise. Exercise is good for everyone, including people with low red blood cell levels, because exercise improves both physical and mental health. Exercise helps you stay healthy and avoid certain diseases.

Cardio exercises like brisk walking, jogging, and swimming are best, but you can do any exercise.
Exercise plays an important role in red blood cell production. During intense exercise, you will get tired and sweat a lot. High-intensity exercise causes the body to take in a large amount of oxygen. When this happens, it sends a signal to the brain that the body is lacking oxygen, thereby stimulating the production of red blood cells and hemoglobin. This process will generate and supply the required amount of oxygen.

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Quit bad habits. When low red blood cell counts are a concern, it’s best to avoid smoking and drinking alcohol. Breaking these bad habits is also good for your overall health.

Smoking can impede blood circulation by constricting blood vessels and causing the blood to thicken. This condition makes it difficult for blood to circulate properly and to deliver oxygen to other parts of the body. Not only that, smoking also leads to a lack of oxygen in the bone marrow.
On the other hand, consuming too much alcohol can cause the blood to thicken and slow down, leading to a lack of oxygen in the blood, reduced red blood cell production, and the production of immature red blood cells.

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Blood transfusion if necessary. If your red blood cell count is so low that neither food nor supplements can make up for it, you may choose to have a blood transfusion. You can talk to your doctor about diagnostic testing. A complete blood count (CBC) test will help calculate the number of red blood cells in the body.

A normal red blood cell count is 4-6 million cells per milliliter of blood. If your red blood cell count is low, your doctor may recommend a transfusion of red blood cells (PRBC) or whole blood, to meet your body’s need for red blood cells and other blood components. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Go for regular health check-ups. Regular check-ups are the best way to know the status of your red blood cell count. Furthermore, you will likely need further testing to screen for the underlying problem of low red blood cells. Ideally, you should have regular health checkups, at least once a year.

If you have been diagnosed with a low red blood cell count, you need to keep in mind the tips shared above. Change your lifestyle and diet to increase your red blood cell count before your follow-up visit. If followed correctly, red blood cell levels should return to normal.

Understanding red blood cell count

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Understand the basics of red blood cells. About a quarter of the cells in the human body are red blood cells or red blood cells. Red blood cells grow in the bone marrow at about 2.4 million cells per second.

Red blood cells circulate in the body for 100-120 days. That’s why you can only donate blood once every 3-4 months.
On average, men have 5.2 million red blood cells, and women have about 4.6 million red blood cells per cubic millimeter. If you regularly donate blood, you will find that men pass the blood donation test more often than women.

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Understand how hemoglobin works in the blood. Hemoglobin is an iron-rich protein and a major component of red blood cells. Hemoglobin gives blood its red color when iron binds to oxygen.

Each hemoglobin molecule has 4 iron atoms and each atom is bound to 1 oxygen molecule and 2 oxygen atoms. About 33% of a red blood cell is hemoglobin, which is usually 15.5 g/dL in men and 14 g/dL in women.

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Understand the role of red blood cells. Red blood cells play an important role in transporting oxygen-rich blood from the lungs to tissues and cells. Red blood cells have cell membranes composed of lipids and proteins necessary for physiological function, and function in a network of capillaries through the circulatory system.

In addition, red blood cells also help remove CO2. Red blood cells contain the enzyme carbonic anhydrase, which allows the reaction between water and CO2 to form carbonic acid and separate the hydrogen ion from the bicarbonate ion.
The hydrogen ion binds to hemoglobin, while the bicarbonate ion enters the plasma (plasma), removing about 70% of CO2. 20% CO2 will bind to hemoglobin, then secreted into the lungs. Meanwhile, the remaining 7% will be diffused in the plasma.

Advice

Vitamin B12 and vitamin B6 are also very good. Vitamin B12 is available in the form of 2.4 mcg tablets and can be taken once daily. Vitamin B6 is available in the form of 1.5 mcg tablets and can be taken once daily. Meat and eggs are rich in vitamin B12, while bananas, fish and baked potatoes are rich in vitamin B6.
The life cycle of a red blood cell is about 120 days; Soon after, the bone marrow releases a new batch of red blood cells.

Steps

Change your diet

Lifestyle change

Understanding red blood cell count

Advice

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