Eight-month-old Dudu is chubby and lively, but was recently found to be mildly anemic during a physical examination at the health station. The family was puzzled by the fact that all the growth indicators were normal, the weight was in the upper level of children of the same age, the height was also in the upper level, and Dudu could drink a lot of milk every day, so why was he still anemic? The health care doctor patiently explained to Dudu’s family that Dudu was suffering from nutritional iron deficiency anemia, which is the most common type of pediatric anemia and occurs in babies between the ages of 6 months and 2 years. Why are babies at this age prone to iron deficiency? The following causes can exist individually or together: 1. Insufficient iron stores in the body The last trimester of fetal life receives the most iron from the mother. Severe iron deficiency anemia in the mother, prematurity or twin births resulting in low birth weight of the baby, and blood loss from the fetal circulation are the causes of reduced iron stores in the newborn. Insufficient iron intake Insufficient supply of iron in the diet is an important cause of iron deficiency anemia. Human milk and cow’s milk have low iron content, which is not enough for infants. If you feed with milk alone and do not add supplementary food containing more iron in time, iron deficiency anemia will easily occur. 3.Iron absorption disorder Food collocation can affect the absorption of iron, and iron absorption disorder caused by long-term diarrhea, digestive tract malformation, intestinal malabsorption, etc. can also lead to iron deficiency anemia. The faster the growth rate, the greater the need for iron and the more likely iron deficiency will occur. The weight of infants increases to 3 times that of their first birthday by the age of one, and can increase to 5-6 times in preterm babies, so infancy, especially preterm babies, is most likely to have iron deficiency anemia. 5. Excessive loss or consumption of iron Normal infants excrete more iron from feces than from diet within two months after birth, and lose relatively more iron from the skin. In addition, intestinal blood loss can also be caused by intestinal polyps, Meckel’s diverticulum, hookworm disease, etc. Because 1 ml of blood loss is equivalent to 0.5 mg of iron loss, long-term small amount of blood loss from any cause is an important cause of iron deficiency anemia. Long-term recurrent infectious diseases can cause anemia due to increased consumption. After birth, Dudu has been artificially fed, and only recently began to add rice flour and egg yolk, adding very little, and Dudu has been growing rapidly since birth, and now weighs three times more than at birth; in addition, Dudu has just recovered from diarrhea that lasted for more than twenty days. After some explanations from the health care doctor, Dudu’s family finally understood that the above factors can lead to nutritional iron deficiency anemia. The main concern of Dodo’s family now is to have this disease and how it will affect the baby. How should it be treated? How can this disease be prevented? There is a lot of research evidence that iron deficiency can affect various functions of children such as growth and development, exercise and immunity, so active treatment and prevention are very important. First, mothers should take better care of their babies to avoid infections. If there is a clear cause, prompt treatment is needed, such as exclusion of hookworms, surgical treatment of intestinal malformations, and control of chronic blood loss. Both breastfed or artificially fed babies should promptly add supplementary foods rich in iron with high iron absorption rate, and pay attention to a reasonable mix of meals. If the hemoglobin is above 90g/L (9g/dL), adjust the diet first, and then take iron supplements after 1 month when the hemoglobin does not improve. If the hemoglobin is below 90g/L (9g/dL), iron should be applied under the guidance of the doctor. Iron is an effective drug for the treatment of iron deficiency anemia. Oral iron is generally used, and commonly used preparations include ferrous sulfate, ferrous fumarate, ferrous gluconate, ferrous succinate, and iron polysaccharide complex. It is best to take the drug between meals, not only to reduce the stimulation of the gastric mucosa, but also to facilitate absorption; at the same time, oral vitamin C can promote the absorption of iron. Iron should continue to be used until the hemoglobin reaches a normal level about 2 months before discontinuing the drug, in order to replenish the iron stores. It is best to measure serum ferritin during treatment to avoid iron overdose. If oral administration for 3 weeks is still ineffective, consideration should be given to whether there is a diagnostic error or other reasons affecting the efficacy. Preventive measures include: 1. Pay attention to pregnancy care: pregnant women should pay attention to iron supplementation in order to supply blood to the fetus; 2. Promote breastfeeding: although breast milk contains little iron, the absorption rate is as high as 50%, while the absorption rate of iron in general food is only 1% – 22%, and breastfeeding mothers should also have sufficient iron intake; 3. Provide good feeding instructions: whether breastfeeding or artificial feeding of infants, iron-rich and iron-absorbing foods should be added in a timely manner The baby should be fed with iron-rich, iron-absorbing supplementary foods, such as lean meat, animal blood, offal, fish, soy products, etc., and pay attention to a reasonable mix of meals, and a certain daily intake of fruits and vegetables. If infants are fed with fresh milk, they must be heated to reduce intestinal blood loss due to milk allergy, but with specially formulated breast milk powder, boiling is not necessary; 4. until 1 week of age. For full-term infants, due to the high bioavailability of iron in breast milk, breastfeeding should be done for 4-6 months as much as possible, after which iron-rich foods should be added promptly if exclusive breastfeeding is continued.