Iron deficiency anemia - causes - symptoms, diagnosis, and iron supplements (March 2025):
What is Iron, and why does our body require it? Iron is an essential element. It is a component of hemoglobin (in the red blood cells) and many enzymes in the body. Hemoglobin is a protein in red blood cells. It helps the blood carry oxygen from the lungs to all the body‘s tissues and organs and removes carbon dioxide (a waste product). Hemoglobin is the part of red blood cells that gives blood its red color and enables the red blood cells to carry oxygenated blood throughout your body. It is essential for oxygen transport, respiration, and several biochemical functions. Our body needs iron to produce hemoglobin and myoglobin. More than 70% of Iron is stored in the body in the hemoglobin. About one-third of iron is stored as ferritin and hemosiderin in the bone marrow, spleen, and liver. Only a minor fraction (<1%) circulates in transferrin, the plasma iron carrier. Myoglobin is a protein in our muscles and helps supply oxygen to the cells in our muscles. How does th...