A high level of hemoglobin in the blood significantly increases the viscosity of the blood, increases the likelihood of its clotting, which is why blood clots form, and also increases the load on the internal walls of the vessels (which subsequently causes them to lose tone and become deformed).
What do doctors recommend doing if you have elevated hemoglobin? First of all, adjust your diet, include foods that help normalize the concentration of blood cells, and also slow down the synthesis of new hemoglobin molecules.
What diet should you follow for this? Which foods should you definitely add to your diet, and which should you completely exclude?
Let us remind you that we have previously provided a list of 7 products to reduce hemoglobin.
How does diet affect hemoglobin?
According to research , hemoglobin levels actively increase when consuming foods rich in:
- iron;
- vitamins A, C, E, B-group;
- omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids (as well as omega-6 and omega-9).
Accordingly, they should be excluded, if possible, from the diet (not completely, consuming in a minimal amount purely to maintain the correct balance of nutrients in the body).
The hemoglobin molecule consists of protein (globin) and iron. The process of their connection is stimulated by the above-mentioned vitamins and micronutrients.
Even if you consume foods that are not rich in iron, but there is a deficiency of vitamins in the body, the bioavailability of iron will be reduced to a minimum. That is, it simply will not be absorbed in the required quantity.
In what cases does high hemoglobin most often occur? If the patient’s diet is dominated by:
- products of animal origin (meat, meat by-products);
- seafood;
- citrus;
- chocolate (and other desserts that contain large quantities of cocoa).
Let's remember that in the last article we looked at 20 products that increase hemoglobin.
Moreover, in such patients the amount of plant foods rich in fiber in the diet is minimal.
Recommended duration
The optimal duration of a vegetarian diet to reduce hemoglobin is 40 days.
If necessary, the doctor can extend it , but in most cases this is enough, since abuse of dairy and plant foods can lead to the formation of stones (oxalates).
You can get out of the diet by gradually introducing animal proteins into your diet:
- 1st week - boiled fish (100-150 g);
- 2nd week - fish and poultry (150 g each).
Then a blood test is done. If the hemoglobin level has not increased, then you can start eating beef, pork, nuts, avoiding confectionery, fried and canned food to avoid a relapse.
A dairy-vegetable diet for seven weeks can reduce hemoglobin to normal in the absence of pathologies. The main thing then is to stick to a healthy diet, avoiding physical overload and stress.
How to reduce it in men?
Men traditionally have a slightly faster metabolism than women. Often, increased hemoglobin is a consequence of a violation of the water-salt balance.
The fix for this is extremely simple - you need to drink more , you can also include honey in your diet (this is the richest product in mineral microelements, which help normalize the water-salt balance).
It should also be noted that a whole range of metabolic processes in the male body is regulated by testosterone (a sex hormone). With its deficiency in the blood, metabolism slows down, glucose is actively transformed into fatty compounds, and protein breakdown is also slow.
How to normalize testosterone levels? Doctors recommend including aphrodisiac foods in your diet. These include many spices, as well as garden herbs. But alcohol should be completely abandoned during the treatment period; it is especially important not to drink red wine - this drink dramatically increases the level of hemoglobin in the blood.
It is also important to sharply limit the consumption of fish and seafood, which increase hemoglobin. The body should get proteins from lean varieties of meat, the best option is chicken breast, since it contains a minimum of fat, and there is also much less iron than in pork or beef.
Men are also recommended to comprehensively reduce the number of calories consumed daily and stick to 1.5 – 2 thousand kilocalories per day (with an average norm of 3000 kilocalories). This will help reduce the load on the gastrointestinal tract and speed up the digestion of foods rich in complex carbohydrates. Thus, the body will receive a sufficient amount of energy, but the absorption of protein foods (these foods contain more iron) will slow down.
Another feature of the diet for men is a complete, varied diet. It is important to eat at least 4–6 times a day, in small portions. This will also help normalize blood viscosity and normalize hemoglobin balance.
In mature men, after 40 years, the need for hemoglobin temporarily increases - this is a consequence of a sharp decrease in the level of testosterone in the blood.
Physical exercise and vitamin D (stimulates the accumulation of calcium in some tissues) are the best ways to level out the age-related decline in testosterone. Therefore, the most effective thing at this age is to simply walk in the fresh air and sunbathe as often as possible. The body does not receive as much vitamin D from food as it does in epithelial cells when exposed to ultraviolet radiation.
Sample menu for adults and pregnant women
When drawing up a daily menu with low hemoglobin, you need to take into account that a man needs at least 10 mg of iron per day, and a woman needs 18 mg; for pregnant women, this figure is doubled.
But an allowance should be made for the fact that only a quarter of the iron is absorbed from animal products and seafood, and only 7% of iron is beneficial from plant foods.
The menu in each case is compiled individually by a specialist, but there are general principles:
- The first meal should consist of two dishes - fish fillet, stewed liver, any porridge and vegetable puree, cereal pudding, tea, a sandwich with cheese and butter.
At noon you can eat fish with vegetables, cheese, a salad of fresh vegetables, drink a glass of tea or rosehip infusion.
For lunch, soup with chicken or mushroom broth, fish soup, borscht or cabbage soup is a must. The second course is served with a meat dish and vegetable cutlets. Porridge, puddings, and stewed vegetables are healthy. Drinks and desserts may include jelly, dried compote, jelly or fruit mix.
For an afternoon snack, berries, fruit mousses, crackers, jelly, tea or a vitamin infusion are offered.
Dinner should also include two dishes, options include cheese, meat or fish cutlets, puddings or cereal casseroles, vegetable stews or casseroles, fresh vegetables, tea.
It is important that all products contain a lot of protein, iron, other microelements that facilitate its absorption, and vitamins.
As for the nutrition of pregnant women, increasing hemoglobin is especially important for them. After all, pregnant women may have allergic reactions to certain types of food and special food preferences.
It is useful to drink a glass of fresh vegetable juice, be sure to eat salads that increase intestinal motility, but you need to be wary of nitrates, so these should only be seasonal vegetables. The same goes for fruits and berries.
Fresh apples are preferred, other berries and fruits containing vitamin C are: rowan berries, pomegranates, cranberries, blueberries, strawberries. In winter, they can be replaced with dried fruits, eaten due to their high calorie content in the first half of the day. Infusions of nettle, rose hips, buckwheat, nuts, and chocolate are rich in iron (only if you are not overweight).
We should not forget about meat, fish, and offal. This is an excellent source of protein for expectant mothers. And hematogen is useful as a dessert.
Those suffering from iron deficiency anemia need to know that iron that enters the body is divided into heme and non-heme. They differ in valency and absorption rate.
The non-heme trivalent variety is found in plant foods. And bivalent heme is more suitable in structure; meat products are rich in it.
The leader in heme iron content is veal; it is useful to wash it down with fruit juices and fruit drinks. And when drinking meat dishes with tea or coffee, the absorption of iron worsens. The same applies to dairy products.
But you can’t do without them, because they are a source of calcium. Therefore, it is better to drink milk separately. Eggshell powder infused with lemon juice will be of great benefit in saturating the body with calcium.
To speed up the absorption of iron from apples, it is better not to combine them with anything and not eat them for half an hour after such a dessert. And adding bell pepper to any unsweetened salads will have a very positive effect on the absorption of iron.
How to lower it in women?
The female body's need for iron and B vitamins is higher than that of the male body. Therefore, strict restriction of meat dishes is strictly contraindicated.
Doctors recommend giving preference to fermented milk products that reduce hemoglobin - they contain calcium, which best reduces the bioavailability of iron and helps normalize the hemoglobin balance in the blood.
The most calcium is found in goat's milk, cottage cheese, fatty sour cream, kefir, and fermented baked milk.
Physical activity is also extremely important for women - it speeds up metabolism, normalizes the biochemical composition of the blood, and also helps to normalize hormonal levels, which also indirectly affects the production of hemoglobin.
During pregnancy, high hemoglobin is the norm. In the first trimester, as a rule, its level decreases slightly, then it gradually increases and reaches its maximum in the third trimester (immediately before childbirth). It is strictly prohibited to artificially lower it during this period - this can harm the unborn child. Let us remind you that we reviewed 8 useful products for pregnant women in a separate article.
Women should also include the following foods in their diet:
- cereal porridge;
- baking and flour (in moderation, may increase symptoms of toxicosis in the early stages of pregnancy);
- green vegetables and fruits.
But you should avoid fish, nuts, and natural chocolate (it is better to give preference to white or milk).
Doctors also recommend that women temporarily increase the amount of sweets they consume (ideally, eat desserts based on fermented milk products). But you shouldn’t overuse it - excess glucose in the blood increases blood viscosity exponentially.
What foods reduce hemoglobin in the blood?
- Milk, butter, sour cream. Contain calcium, which prevents the formation of hemoglobin protein. There is especially a lot of it in cow's milk.
- Cheese. Low fat, unsalted.
- Dairy products. Natural, without additives, dyes, preservatives, sugar: kefir, yogurt, fermented baked milk.
- Durum pasta.
- Chicken eggs. The concentration of red blood cells and hemoglobin is influenced mainly by protein. The yolk contains a large amount of fat.
- Chocolate. Only “milk”, not black.
- Wheat, wheat bread, bran.
- Water. In large quantities.
Folk remedies
Among the traditional methods of treatment, the truly effective ones (and recommended by doctors themselves) are:
- Mumiyo with water. It’s easy to prepare: add 0.5 grams of mumiyo to 1 glass of water (or 1 tablet if used in this form). Drink on an empty stomach. This helps normalize the water-salt balance, reduce blood viscosity, and accelerate the absorption of calcium.
- Infusion based on burdock root. It also affects the water-salt balance and slows down metabolism. To prepare such a decoction, you need to mix 150 grams of fresh grated burdock roots with 1 liter of boiling water and leave until it cools completely. Take 100 milliliters 4 times a day before each planned meal.
- Horsetail tincture. It has a strong diuretic effect, reduces the concentration of sodium in the blood, and normalizes the metabolic rate. For preparation, dried pagons of the plant are used. 30 grams of these are poured into a glass of boiling water, left for 2 hours, and drunk in one gulp. The course of treatment is no more than 7 days, then a mandatory break is taken for 5–10 days (to minimize the load on the urinary system).
- Aloe based tincture. It is prepared as follows: 35 grams of aloe pulp (without needles) is poured with 200 milliliters of strong alcohol (preferably moonshine or alcohol). Leave for 1 week in a dark place at room temperature. Take 4 – 6 drops 3 times a day after meals. You can replace aloe with agave - the biochemical composition of these indoor flowers is almost identical.
- Tincture of calendula. Ready-made can be purchased at almost any pharmacy. But you can cook it yourself at home. You will need 15 grams of dry calendula base and 150 milliliters of vodka. Leave for only 2 days, take 1 teaspoon 2 times a day (after breakfast and dinner).
- Clove tincture. Although this is an extremely bitter remedy, it helps to quickly reduce the bioavailability of iron. To prepare the tincture, mix 8 dried clove inflorescences and 50 milliliters of vodka. Leave for 3 days. Take 5 drops 3 times a day. The main thing is not to overeat or drink. It is generally better to abstain from food and drink for the next 1.5 hours after using the product.
Other methods
If all of the above treatment methods do not bring the desired effect, doctors prescribe drug therapy. Basic recommendations:
- Taking calcium-based drugs (calcium chloride) in therapeutic doses. The course of treatment can be 3 weeks, followed by a mandatory break.
- Refusal of multivitamin complexes. You should also avoid medications that contain B-group vitamins in therapeutic dosages.
- In critical cases, hospitalization is prescribed. In this case, droppers based on sodium chloride, as well as saline, are used - they help reduce the concentration of iron in the blood, provide the body with all micronutrients, and accelerate the elimination of toxins (which actively accumulate with excess hemoglobin).
When treating in a hospital setting, the main task for doctors is to establish the exact cause of the sharp increase in hemoglobin. And, if possible, completely eliminate this factor. Unfortunately, quite often chronic diseases of the endocrine system lead to an increase in hemoglobin, which cannot be completely eliminated. To normalize the patient’s condition, he will have to constantly adhere to the above recommendations in terms of diet.
Also, to quickly reduce hemoglobin, doctors can prescribe Regidron - this is the safest method of normalizing the water-salt balance. In essence, this drug is a set of minerals and salts, the level of which decreases as blood viscosity increases.
Regidron should be taken for at least 4 days in small doses (up to 2 sachets per day in the form of a ready-made solution). But it is worth considering that taking Regidron in therapeutic doses can provoke dysfunction of the urinary system, inflammation of the ureters (if there were stones and sand in the kidneys) and also cause symptoms of toxicosis (due to excess sodium, which, when in excess, acts as a toxin and also reduces blood potassium level).
