WHAT IS ANEMIA?

Anemia is caused when there are too few red blood cells (RBCs) circulating in the bloodstream. That can happen when they are lost or destroyed too quickly or when they are produced too slowly. Anemia can also be caused by deformed red blood cells, which is the case in inherited sickle cell anemia, or when the cells are either too large or too small to function properly.

When a person is anemic, the blood cannot effectively transport the oxygen inhaled from the lungs to all the tissues of the body. It is also less effective in retrieving carbon dioxide from the tissues and carrying it back to the lungs to be exhaled. The blood simply cannot do its job as well as it should. The expression “tired blood” is an apt one, even if it's not a scientific description.

>> Anatomy of a red blood cell